


Down the Hole

by Acting4Hope



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, abuse mention, drug mention, violence mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-28
Updated: 2016-02-27
Packaged: 2018-04-28 13:40:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5092859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Acting4Hope/pseuds/Acting4Hope
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Howdy stranger!” The flower spoke, “My name’s Flowey! Flowey the Flower!” The flower’s smile faltered as it laughed bitterly. </p>
<p>“And boy, did you make one big mistake falling down here.” </p>
<p>_______________________________________</p>
<p>Edit, as of 6/19/16: </p>
<p>Yeah this is on a permanent hiatus. I'm real sorry.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Unfortunate Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter to a several-chapter series I plan on doing! Based on the fabulous Underfell!AU (because I honestly couldn't keep myself away from that bandwagon, who blames me though? I love darker versions of characters and how those plots work out) I'm trying to take a step away from all of the SU stuff I've been doing (Eclipse will be done, probably at a later date, for those who have kept up with that two-part series) and Undertale was such a nice breath of fresh air from all the fandom troubles! 
> 
> That all being said, I hope you enjoy this series!!

_Goodness._  

_Hope._  

_Charity._

_**Mercy.** _

Many people believe these traits lie in everyone, no matter how wicked or corrupt they seem. They believe that with just a little bit of effort from a soul that is pure, any person can become good. No matter their past, present, or future, they are able to change.

Now I’m not here to approve or disprove this idea. I’m merely here to tell the story of a young child who came to learn that some people, some _creatures_ , are almost incapable of being good.

Frisk is a young child, only recently turning ten, and so far they have experienced only the worst from life. An absent father, a frequently-leaving mother, and poor financial placement has put Frisk through the wringer. They found themselves in foster care more than at home, and they also found out that kids at school preferred other kids with their real parents than orphaned children. Technically Frisk was not an actual orphan, their mother always returning after a long period of time, but it’s not like Frisk was able to convey that very well. Frisk was selectively mute, only choosing to be verbal when comfortable or in times of great distress. For the most part they used sign language when they wanted to speak, which then caused the kids at school to believe they were deaf. That only added an even greater amount of misery to poor Frisk.

But, despite all of these depressing circumstances, Frisk was still a very upbeat child; though it would be very hard to see that from the blank facial expression they typically had. Frisk was much like their mother in their belief that if you remained good then, eventually, the world would see that and be good like you as well. Frisk’s mother was not very religious as she was spiritual, and Frisk grew up learning that the vibes and airs you gave off would be able to alter the vibes and airs of others, if potent enough. So Frisk remained positive and never grew angry with the children that bullied them. They would help anyone and everyone, no matter the personal cost to them. The town recognized this trait in the child, and many of the elders and less fortunate were much kinder and more caring to little Frisk. Whether it be shooing pesky children away or giving Frisk a few dollars to buy the candy they’ve been staring at through the store window, the town tried to give as much as they could back to the little child. Frisk appreciated the townspeople’s kindness, which further fueled their desire to be good. Yes, Frisk’s life wasn’t easy, but they were content with the way it was going.

That is, until their mother finally started dating again. Frisk had not even been back with their mother for a month before she brought in her new boyfriend. While nice at first, Frisk began to notice small things change in their mother. For one, all of her spiritual items were thrown out, her boyfriend being atheist and not accepting “this kind of stupid whack job religious crap in his house”. Frisk’s mother also became more jumpy when her boyfriend was home, and Frisk noticed the bruises on their mother’s arms, neck, and legs that she tried to hide. She was also back to her old habits, and Frisk would often have to leave the house and go on long walks just to avoid the noxious fumes coming their mother’s room.

Frisk knew something needed to change. That boyfriend needed to leave and stay out, Frisk decided one day on one of their walks. If this man didn’t leave, he would surely end up ruining their mother’s life, or worse: end it entirely. Frisk shuddered at that thought and turned home to, hopefully, sit their mother down and discuss this issue.

Sadly, once they got home, they found there was no mother to talk to. Only a limp corpse next to a rusty needle and a letter addressed to Frisk, wishing them goodbye and an apology for being such a horrid mother. Frisk was not fooled by the note, though, for the handwriting was not hers. They figured it was the boyfriend’s doing after discovering her overdosed body, taking as many valuables as he can, and fleeing the scene. Frisk stared at their mother’s body, not a single tear being shed, before they walked over to her, kissed her forehead, and gently closed her eyes for good. Then they grabbed their bookbag, dumped all of the school stuff out, packed some food, water, a blanket, and a coat, and left.

Where were they going? They weren’t exactly sure. Frisk just walked their usual route and didn’t stop this time around. They walked past the shops filled with happy shoppers, the school, now empty for the night, and the park which was dismal and sad due to lack of proper funding. They walked through the town and far far away, about two miles away to be exact, to the base of Mt. Ebott.

Many legends surround Mt. Ebott and the reasons why no one typically goes up it. Legends tell of a great war between humans and wicked monsters. Humans won the battle and forced the monsters into a hole in Mt. Ebott, which was then magically sealed by seven grand wizards. Supposedly the spell cast on the opening allowed anything to enter, but for nothing to exit. It required the power of seven humans souls and one monster soul in order to break the spell. Though absolute hogwash to some, others believe that the cave is real and does contain the monsters, now angry from years of imprisonment. Some people have even gone up Mt. Ebott to prove that there is or is not monsters in the hole, but no one who has gone up has ever returned.

Frisk heard this legend from their mother, who was a firm believer that the monsters were real. She told Frisk that it wasn’t right for humans to lock them away like that and that, if given the chance, she would go down there and free them so everyone could be together as one. Frisk neither believed in the legend, nor did they not believe it. And at this point, Frisk barely even remembered the legend of the monsters in the hole. All Frisk could think about now were flashing images of their mother’s dead body and all the memories they’ve had with her.

Without even fully realizing it, Frisk was almost halfway to the mountain’s summit. Frisk’s eyes were glued to the floor below them, their thoughts becoming jumbled and hazy with memories of their mother. Little raindrops began falling onto their head, and before long it began to pour down on the young child. As the rain pelted the earth from above, little tears began mingling with the droplets that were streaming down Frisk’s face. They were tired, oh so tired of all this pain they’ve been feeling. They just wanted to go home and curl up with their mother and go to sleep.

But there was no mother waiting for them there, just an empty shell of a human that had lost everything to the end of an old needle. Frisk had nothing anymore. No home, no mother, no friends, no future, no _hope_.

Upon reaching the summit, Frisk collapsed to their knees and began wailing. Their cries echoed through the air; birds flying away at the sound of pure agony ringing through the dreary, fall sky. The rain didn’t stop as Frisk curled up into a ball on the ground and wept, letting despair fill every inch of their body.

Suddenly, Frisk heard a noise. A little, miniscule noise that most would probably not hear, but Frisk did. And it made their crying cease as they sat up to listen for it again. And they heard it again, still just as faint. It sounded a lot like...crying? Crying and...some words? “Help”? Frisk rose to their feet and followed the sound of the noise into a large, cavernous opening in the mountain. Frisk ignored the feeling of doom surrounding the place and how the stalactites and stalagmites made the opening look like the mouth of some horrid beast. Frisk followed the noise inside the opening and directly to a large hole in the ground inside the cave.

Frisk peered down the hole, making sure they were not too close to the hole’s edge. It was dark in the hole, and Frisk wasn’t able to see how deep the hole was. But they heard the cry again, louder than before. Frisk could tell that whatever was crying out was stuck down that hole. Maybe it was an injured person calling for help? Or maybe, just maybe, it was a small monster wanting out of the prison they were forced to be in. Whatever it was, Frisk knew they needed help, so they carefully made their way closer to the hole’s edge.

Now, I can’t exactly explain to you what happened just now. Perhaps it was Frisk’s faulty footing. Or maybe the mud on Frisk’s shoes caused them to slip. Or maybe they even used their weight to drop themselves in out of the pure despair they were feeling. Well, whatever it was, Frisk fell down the hole. And before they could even scream in surprise, they hit the ground with a harsh THUD!

A minute passed. Then two. Three. Four. Five, before Frisk finally moved. They rolled over onto their back and slowly opened their eyes. The lighting was dim, but Frisk could make out two huge stone pillars towering above them. Frisk felt the ground below them. It was soft, like flower petals. When they stood, they were able to see that they were indeed laying on flowers. Dozens of golden sunflowers surrounded by green grass were what Frisk landed on.

The cries rang out again, and Frisk heard them the loudest than ever before. They were close, whatever or _whoever_ they were, and Frisk was determined to find them. Pressing their hand to the wall, they guided themselves through the dimly-lit room and to a large, carved stone door. Frisk gave a slight push and opened the door, and found an even darker room waiting for them.

Inside the room was a small beam of light, which illuminated a patch of grass. On said patch of grass was a little sunflower like the other sunflowers in the other room. But this flower was worn and withered; it’s petals drooping and it’s leaves slightly torn in places. Frisk took a tentative step toward the flower and jumped when the flower turned toward them. The flower had a face that looked just as worn and beaten as the rest of them, but they were still smiling, surprisingly enough.  

“Howdy stranger!” The flower spoke, “My name’s Flowey! Flowey the Flower!” The flower’s smile faltered as it laughed bitterly.

**  
** “And boy, did you make one **_big mistake_** falling down here.”


	2. A New Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody!!! I'm back with another chapter! I really appreciate the feedback that this fic has been getting, so thank you all for your support! As I am writing this, my mind is reeling from the fact that this fic got to 1000 hits in a little over a week! That's so incredibly amazing and I just cannot believe it! Thank you all for taking the time to read this, and I hope you stick around for more of this, and other works of mine, in the future!!! 
> 
> Also I apologize if this is a little short, I was going to make this chapter longer, but I've been holding off on working on this for a while and I felt for the 1000 hit mark I should post another chapter!

Frisk blinked once and then wiped their eyes, crouching down to the flower’s level to make sure their eyes and ears were not deceiving them. The flower continued to nervously glance up at Frisk as Frisk silently inspected the flower. When Frisk reached their hand out toward the flower, it shrieked and cowered away. Frisk looked surprised and inched away from the flower slowly. They looked down at their hand, dirtied from the fall, and then back to the quivering flower. It was obvious, at this point, that the flower was very much alive and able to speak. How this was possible, however, was a mystery to the little child as they watched the flower attentively.

“H-Hey,” The flower said, “what’s with that look? You never seen a talking flower before?” Frisk shook their head, and the flower stopped and nodded it's head slowly. “Right right, you’re a human. Of course you’ve never seen a talking flower before.” Frisk took a step toward the flower and reached their hand out once more. This time, the flower did not cower away, but merely shut its eyes as Frisk gently brushed their fingers against the petals. They were soft, but obviously wilted, and Frisk felt bad for the small flower. It looked innocent and afraid; like it would wither in the palm of your hand if you plucked it from the earth.  

“S-So, how did you fall down here?” The flower asked, “Someone throw you down here or something?” Frisk frowned, remembering their day following up to this moment. The flower’s expression dropped to a solemn look. “Oh, sorry. Bad topic, I get it.” Frisk nodded and sat down in front of the flower, still idly playing with it’s petals.

“What’s your name, human?” Frisk looked at the flower blankly, causing the flower to tense up. “Well I already told you mine, so you might as well tell me yours!” The flower smiled, “So mine name’s Flowey! And you?” Frisk pondered on answering the question, for they didn’t exactly know whether they could trust this little plant. While it seemed harmless, Frisk couldn’t be so sure. After all, this was a whole other world compared to the surface world. Frisk was the only human in a place filled with monsters, from what Frisk could assume by meeting a talking flower. But, Frisk had some hope that this flower could be helpful and, maybe even, a _friend_.

“Frisk,” Frisk said quietly. A tense silence flooded the room as the flower and Frisk just silently gazed at each other. Frisk wouldn’t admit this, but they were slightly unnerved by the sound of their voice for a second and needed to recuperate before continuing on with the matter at hand. The flower was just...staring, closely observing Frisk’s features. The flower seemed lost in thought as it gazed at Frisk.

“Y-You…” The flower started, an edge of remembrance in its voice, “remind me of...someone I used to know. A-A human, like you…” The flower then shook its head, “No no, that person is long gone now.” The flower faced Frisk again with a slight smile tugging at its lips, “It is nice to meet you Frisk. I am Flowey, like I said earlier.”

Frisk nodded their head, remembering the flower’s name, and smiled a bit back at Flowey. Flowey seemed encouraged by Frisk’s smile, but it still looked nervous and would look around them every five seconds as the pair sat in the small patch of grass.

“So, uhm, I’m guessing you’re going to...want to get out of here? Like out of this hole?” Flowey asked, breaking another silence. Frisk tensed, remembering the situation they were in. Despite the seemingly friendly flower they had encountered here, they knew that there were to be far more dangerous monsters up ahead, and there was surely no way for them to climb back up the hole they fell down in. No, the only way to get out of here was…

Wait, Frisk had no idea how to get out of here, if they even could. The realization that there was possibly no way for Frisk to return to the surface frightened them. They felt tears well up in their eyes once more, and they began to tremble in fear as they hiccuped out sobs of despair. Frisk brought their knees up to their chest and held their legs tightly as they began to cry. Flowey watched, shocked and surprised at the child’s sudden change in behavior, and tried to reach out for them.

“H-Hey,” Flowey stammered, “it’s going to be alight, Frisk. Don’t...don’t cry. You’re going to get out of here, okay?” As soon as Flowey said that, Frisk looked up from their knees and to Flowey, their face hopeful. Flowey smiled, “Y-Yeah! You’re going to get out of here...and I’m going to help you! After all, you would need someone with knowledge of the Underground or else you’d-” Flowey cut itself off, realizing what they were about to say, leaving Frisk confused.

“N-Never mind,” Flowey continued, brushing off their fears to keep the child determined, “let’s just get out of here okay? There’s a door about a yard north of me. When you go through there we’ll handle planning the rest of our journey.” Frisk nodded and stood, grabbing their backpack, previously forgotten, and walked away from Flowey. Flowey sat and waited before realizing Frisk wasn’t taking them with.

“Wait!! Frisk wait!!” Flowey called out, halting Frisk in their tracks. “You forgot about me! How am I supposed to guide you through the Underground, let alone the _Ruins_ that await us, if I’m planted here in the Earth?”

Frisk realized that Flowey’s immobility was a problem and quickly forged a solution. Rummaging through their bag, Frisk pulled out a half-filled water bottle. They then dumped the water onto the soil near Flowey, before scooping up some of that wet soil and placing it inside the empty water bottle. Once they filled it just about a third of the way, Frisk carefully scooped the soil around Flowey and dug deep enough to get their roots. Then, they gently placed Flowey inside of the water bottle, shaking the water bottle slowly to get Flowey’s roots integrated with the rest of the soil.

Frisk smiled at their handiwork and Flowey was impressed.

“Nice work, Frisk!” Flowey congratulated, “Now let’s head north and get you out of here as quickly as possible!” Frisk’s smile grew wide and genuine as they retrieved their backpack once more and strode down the hallway.

Once they were a ways down, another large stone door stood between Frisk and a new journey. Frisk, without further delay, pushed open the stone door. A bright light poured into the room, blinding both Frisk and Flowey for a moment. Frisk walked blindly through the entrance, holding Flowey’s container in their two hands. Meanwhile, Flowey shuddered.

Flowey knew now why Frisk seemed so familiar. That seemingly emotionless face, the genuine hospitality, the _determination_. It all rung out like a distant bell for Flowey.   
  


Yes, it reminded Flowey of **them**.  

 **  
** Let’s just hope what happened to **them** doesn’t happen to **Frisk**.


	3. The Ruins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wowie this chapter came out much quicker than the last one! I managed to write this all in the Gifted room today (thank my horrible but decent Civics teacher who let me go down and write my hell) so I decided I might as well post this! This chapter's kind of short, but I like to end things on a little bit of a cliffhanger! 
> 
> With that out of the way, enjoy! I hope you all are liking this so far!!

Through the door was another room; several large buttons were on the right side of the floor and a switch hung on the wall by another sealed door. Frisk walked further into the room, the door shutting behind them.

“Okay Frisk, welcome to the Ruins!” Flowey said, “This place, as well as many other places in the Underground, run on many different kinds of puzzles. They were designed to hinder fallen humans from going very far, as well as they were just really fun to make. In order to get through this door, you’ll have to step on several buttons. Here, step on the one’s I tell you to; I still remember this puzzle.” Frisk nodded and followed Flowey’s lead. Once the proper buttons were pressed, Frisk walked to the lever by the door and pulled it. The door made a clicking sound before opening slowly.  

“Alright! Great job Frisk!” Flowey cheered. Frisk smiled and walked through the next door. Past there was long hallway, a little stream flowing through which had a small bridge over it. Frisk looked down the hallway and saw another stream and bridge toward the next opening. The stream was clear, save for a few patches of murky water. The vines on the wall looked wilted and sad, and an air of mystery and dread hung over this area. It was much more dismal in here than it was in any other room Frisk had been in. The mood change made them shiver.

“Oh man, this place has certainly changed since the last time I’ve walked through here,” Flowey noted with a shiver of their little plant body, “I guess that can be expected. Toriel must be going mad from lack of company…..or victims….” Frisk looked down at Flowey and tilted their head in confusion. Flowey looked up at them. “Oh right, you don’t know who Toriel is…” Frisk nodded. Flowey gulped and their expression dropped.

“W-Well, she _used_ be very nice. The sweetest lady in the land, many would call her. She was the queen, alongside Asgore, our current king. But then...well let’s just say that some very bad things happened and Toriel was banished to the Ruins, never to leave. She was originally okay with this, but taking care of the same monsters and seeing the same sights can make you go a little bit….nuts. She started to lure creatures into her home, promising a pleasant place to stay and a happy life, and then she’d….kill them….and put them into her pies….” Flowey explained nervously. Frisk’s hair stood on end at the sound of some monster kidnapping and cooking other monsters into food; it sounded like something out of a horror movie or a tragically scary play.

“Beware of Toriel, Frisk. She won’t harm me, I’m too bland for her tastes, but she would most certainly take your soul and use the rest of you in some grand meal of hers. Walk through these halls and corridors carefully, and make sure to always listen for footsteps. If you hear any, run, hide, and make no noise. I will try to help you, but my plant body only allows me to do so much. Do you understand?” Frisk nodded at Flowey’s commands and bent their body lower to the ground, holding Flowey closer to their chest. Flowey guided Frisk through the hall and told them the appropriate switches to pull to deactivate the spikes that were in the way of the opening to the next room.

The room after that was a small curved hallway with a weathered dummy off to the side. Frisk carefully touched the dummy, petting it as if it would offer the dummy some sort of comfort. They did this until Flowey instructed them to stop dilly-dallying and move forward. Frisk made their way to the next opening, but Flowey stopped them.

“Listen, Frisk. Through this door is where a majority of the Ruin’s monsters live. They don’t hang around back here because it’s not very spacious, but from this next hallway on you will have the chance of encountering a monster. They will not want to hurt you, trust me. These creatures are far too afraid of Toriel to do anything else but cower and hide. If a monster does approach you, they are probably just going to warn you about Toriel or plead with you to end their life. No matter what they say or do, just leave them be. It’s better you remain innocent and kind throughout all this, for it will better help you in fights in the future. Just...remain positive when encountering monsters, okay? Be good to them, and I know they will be good to you.” Flowey warned. Frisk gave another nod to Flowey and carefully made their way to the next hall.

Just like Flowey had said, the next room had a few battered monsters cowering away. One monster, known as Froggit, warned Frisk to never follow the sounds of singing or the smells of baked goods. Another Froggit told Frisk that they should run if they were to ever encounter a long, empty corridor, for danger awaits them if they do not hurry. Frisk took these words to heart and gave the Froggits encouraging pats on the head before making their way through the next room.  

The next room had a long bridge covered completely in deadly spikes. Under the bridge was a coursing river that flowed rapidly. Frisk nervously approached the bridge and followed Flowey’s instructions to the tee until they were both across the bridge. Frisk took a deep breath before continuing.

The next hall they came across seemed to stretch on forever. Frisk waited at the entrance to it, taking in its features. The path was cleanly cut, showing a direct passageway through, but the hall itself was dirty and covered in wilting vines. The hall was dim, and Frisk could barely see five feet in front of them. It was quiet; the mood in the room surprisingly calm and serene.

Frisk knew something was wrong.

With their body crouched low, Flowey close to their chest, and their head ducked down, Frisk crawled their way through the hall, purposely avoiding the clean path. As they walked, a distant sound of music was heard. Frisk made sure to stop and lay on the ground once they heard it, placing Flowey in their bag and slinking across the floor. The music eventually quieted to nothing, but Frisk remained crawling carefully along the floor, going as fast as they could without making a whole lot of noise. The end of the hallway was coming near; Frisk could tell by the dim light getting brighter in the distance. Suddenly, they came across a pillar standing right next to the entrance. With Flowey tucked safely inside their bag, unable to see what was in front of them, there was absolutely no way for Frisk to know what would happen next.

Feeling safe once more, Frisk rose to their feet and walked past the pillar and to the door.

But something stopped them. It was as if an eerie gloom was hovering right behind Frisk, waiting to pounce on them once they turned. Frisk’s hairs stood on end as they slowly turned around to face this gloom.

Piercing red glowed behind the pillar. The figure standing there came out from behind it and stepped toward the light of the next hall. They appeared to be some sort of goat monster, judging by the white fur, floppy ear, and horns. They wore a black tunic that was ripped toward the bottom, and some sort of dress under it that had long white sleeves, smudged red and brown in some places. Their eyes were yellow, with red pupils, and they clearly looked tired and deranged. With one strange, snaggle-toothed, sweet smile, Frisk knew exactly who they had just come across.

**  
** “Hello, young one. Would you like a slice of pie?” **  
  
****_Toriel._**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who couldn't tell, Toriel is sort of having that Ms. Lovett (from Sweeney Todd, the play) vibe right now, with a hint of broken mother (which you will see later)!!


	4. Just Some Pie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!! I'm back with more!!! Not that much more, but enough to keep y'all goin!!! And, with that being said, I'm just going to warn you guys about my upcoming schedule. 
> 
> I'm going to try my hardest to get another chapter out the day before, the day of, or the Monday after Thanksgiving (So that'd be the 25th, 26th, or the 30th for the people who are reading this that don't live in America). The reason I'm saying this is because for the weeks after, I may become extremely busy and not get a whole lot of time to sit down and write. 
> 
> The reason for this is because I will have several show choir performances that go back-to-back on weekends and weekdays, a winter chorus concert to prepare for, grades to maintain (which is difficult when you're an Honors student with many afterschool activities), and an audition to prepare for the school play. Yes, all of this falls in December. 
> 
> So December I might not even update, unless I manage to write some sort of form of a chapter, until the Christmas break (which starts on the.....20th I believe??? 21st??? I'll find out) because of all my...school stuff. 
> 
> With all that useless junk most of you probably won't even care about out of the way, enjoy the chapter!!! I love the comments you guys write and I try my best to answer all of them (sometimes it takes me a while to reply, so bear with me on that)!!!! Thank you all for reading thus far and have a wonderful night!

Flowey began to move around in Frisk’s bag, trying to get Frisk’s attention so they could free them, but Frisk remained still as they stared at Toriel. In her hands was a plate carrying an innocent-looking piece of pie. Frisk wondered how many monsters she had lured in with this very same gimmick, and what monster’s unfortunate fate lay in that piece of pie she held.

“Come now, innocent one, do not look so afraid,” Toriel said again, the sweetness in her voice growing more sickening as her grin widened, “It’s just some pie. My special pie recipe, to be exact. It’s something to…. _die for_ ,” She laughed at her own sick pun, and Frisk tried their best not to just turn and flee down the next hall. But Frisk stayed strong, feet planted firmly to the ground, as they watched Toriel cease her laughing and glance down at them oddly.

“Silent type, aren’t you, little one?” Toriel asked, “Ah, no matter. You don’t really need words to eat pie, now do you?” She presented the plate of pie right under Frisk’s nose, and Frisk could smell cinnamon and butterscotch wafting from the pie. They did not want to take the plate, but from the little gleam of irritation in Toriel’s eyes, Frisk decided it would be better to take the pie than to witness what Toriel was like when she was mad. So Frisk carefully took the plate from Toriel’s hands, much to Toriel’s delight, and inspected the slice of pie. Frisk knew they weren’t going to get out of this situation unless they ate this pie, but they also knew that this pie could be potential danger.

Frisk weighed their options. Rejecting said pie slice might end in their death, but eating the pie might also end in death as well. But the pie looked and smelled so good and innocent. Not to mention, Frisk was so hungry; they hadn’t eaten since that morning. One little bite wouldn’t hurt, would it?

Frisk, using their better judgement, shook their head no and presented the pie back to Toriel. Whatever would occur from this decision, Frisk decided, would be better than what might happen if they ate this pie. Toriel did not seem bothered by this, and instead smiled and took the plate back from Frisk.

“Not hungry right now, fearful one?” She asked. Frisk nodded in agreement. “Ah, well I guess I can save this pie for you for later~! After all, we will be seeing each other again _very soon_ ,” Toriel placed one of her hands on top of Frisk’s head and ruffled their hair. Then she walked past them and through the entrance to the next hall.

Frisk stood stiffly, as their bag moved around even more. Flowey had managed to get one of the zippers to start to move, and right after Toriel left Flowey had zipped open enough of the bag for their head to pop through.

“What’s the deal, Frisk?!” Flowey said, offended, “I was dying in there! A concealed place with not enough fresh air is no place for a flower, you know!” Frisk did not respond, but continued to stare at the entrance to the next room, Toriel’s last phrase repeating in their head. Flowey leaned over, looking at Frisk’s blank face, and tilted their head in confusion.

“You okay Frisk? What happened just now?” Flowey asked. Frisk did not give Flowey a response, but the smell of cinnamon and butterscotch still hung in the air, which gave Flowey all the answers they needed. Flowey gasped in shock.

“W….Was Toriel here just now?” Flowey whispered, Frisk nodding their head in response. Flowey froze, shivers going up their stem. They looked to Frisk and saw Frisk was just as stiff as Flowey was. Flowey looked at the entrance to the next hallway with Frisk and an eerie silence stretched between the pair. In the silence, the faint sounds of a melodious tune could be heard, which only added to the hidden terror in both Flowey and Frisk.

“W-Welp,” Flowey said nervously, breaking the silence, “no turning back now, right Frisk? Th-There’s only one way out of the Ruins...So let’s go…” Frisk nodded slowly, then took Flowey out of their bag and zipped the bag shut once more. With small, fearful steps, Frisk made their way into the next area.

The next few rooms were oddly silent; no creatures dared to move out from their hiding places, leaving Frisk and Flowey to wander alone in the vast emptiness. Flowey made no effort to converse with Frisk, only giving them directions and guiding them through the many puzzles. Frisk allowed themselves to be guided and nothing more; their mind was still jarred from their encounter with Toriel. The rooms began to look more and more in shambles the further they went; claw marks chipping through the stone and vines hanging dead on pillars. The leaves on the ground were crumpled and generally a mess. It was mustier here than any of the other rooms before, and the pungent stench of iron clung to the air, so much so that Frisk had to start plugging their nose to prevent gagging.

Flowey finally made it a point to stop in front of an entrance. They peered anxiously inside the next room.

“Okay Frisk, I have good news and bad news,” Flowey started, looking up at Frisk, “The good news is that the exit to the Ruins is not that much farther! Just through this entrance and bam! The exit is upon us!” Frisk grinned at the thought of being out of the Ruins and, hopefully, away from the mysteriously terrifying Toriel. “The bad news is….to get to the exit….we’re going to have to, uh…..How do I say this…” Flowey laughed nervously, but, upon realizing how loudly they were laughing, quickly silenced themselves. “Welp, I might as well just go out and say it,” They added with a sigh.

**  
** “We’re going to go through Toriel’s house, while she’s inside…”


	5. Tea Bags and Torn Pages

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy almost Thanksgiving everyone! I told ya I was going to get another chapter out before the end of this short break!! And this one's actually a decent-sized chapter so hooray!!! 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has been telling me it's okay to take my time and to not worry about this! I really appreciate your words!!! 
> 
> Also, I have a writing blog as well as a personal blog that I post on relatively often, so if you ever wanted to talk to me or maybe ask me questions about this fic (like how I'm coming up with ideas, characters arcs, etc.) you can follow me @autistic--amethyst (my personal) and @michywritings (my writing blog) 
> 
> With that all being said, enjoy this chapter. Sorry if the ending got too dark; I guess this is just an example to how far I could take this story if I do so choose!!

Frisk looked up at the building in front of them. A large house, seemingly pleasant but worn, stood in front of Frisk with a large tree just two feet ahead. The tree was beyond living and stood merely as a reminder of the days of old. The leaves from said tree were in matted piles on the ground. Despite the nerves that buzzed around in Frisk’s body, the sight of the old house filled them with determination, and they carefully walked to the front door. Frisk considered knocking, but a look from Flowey made them choose to slip inside unheard.

Frisk didn’t go unheard for long, after being inside. Toriel getting a bit loopy from loneliness was an _understatement_ once the interior of the house was shown. Claw marks were slashed on all the walls, the name “Asriel” written, scribbled, scratched, or splattered on everything possible. The air stunk the strongest in here of that pungent iron smell, which caused Frisk to cough. That one cough, the smallest of coughs that would have gone unheard by so many others, was the thing that got Frisk caught. And, before Flowey had time to whisper directions to the exit so they could make a dash, Toriel was standing in the hallway facing Frisk.

“Oh my, hello, sneaky one!” Toriel welcomed, that sickeningly sweet smile still spread out on her face, “I did not expect you to come here so soon! I thought you would have wanted to explore the Ruins some more, so I only now started to boil the water for tea!” She walked quickly over to Frisk, not noticing Flowey staring up at her in half fear and half sadness, and ushered Frisk down the hall and into another room with a fireplace. This room looked the most normal off all; books neatly tucked into a bookshelf in the corner, a large rocking chair sitting near the fire, and an old wood table with four chairs surrounding it and a small vase of sunflowers on top were the main aspects to this room. Yet, despite the cheery homeliness this room emanated, this place smelled the strongest of iron out of any place in the Ruins. Frisk had to plug their nose discreetly to prevent any further gagging or coughing from the stench. Toriel didn’t seem to notice it and walked into the next room. Frisk peered inside the next room and saw that it was the kitchen; a pie sitting on the counter and a tea kettle heating up on the stove.

“You can go sit down while I boil the water,” Toriel said from the kitchen, and Frisk turned around to go sit at the table. Once seated, they placed Flowey onto the table beside the other flowers. Flowey looked at Frisk, their head leaning toward Frisk so they could speak.

“Frisk, why are you sitting down?” Flowey whispered harshly, turning toward the kitchen to make sure Toriel was not watching, “We need to get out of here while she’s distracted! Let’s go before she’s done boiling the water or else we might not-” Before Flowey could finish what they were saying, the whistling of the teapot rang out through the room, signaling the water was ready. Toriel walked into the room with a tray holding the tea kettle, two teacups, a couple varieties of tea bags, a little dish of sugarcubes, and two spoons. Toriel handed Frisk a teacup and then sat down across from them.

“Here, frightened one, pick your tea first, and then I’ll pour some water into your cup.” Toriel instructed, her red eyes beaming with unbridled joy. Frisk looked at the different tea bags that were laid out on the tray and thought hard. This lady was a tricky one, and Frisk had no doubt that one of these tea bags might have some sort of poison in it. But Frisk had no time to thoroughly inspect each tea bag, for Toriel was watching closely, so Frisk took a leap of faith and chose the brightest looking tea bag. Not really a good choice, figuring most tea bags were dark in color and, therefore, that might mean that they had just chosen the poisonous bag. But there was no backing out of it now. Toriel’s smile faltered for a moment as she looked at the tea bag Frisk had chosen.

“Golden Flower tea?” Toriel asked, mainly to herself, “Why that was…. _his_ favorite tea….I used to make it for him before he went to...sleep…” She appeared to be lost in thought; the hidden wickedness in her eyes replaced with bittersweet sadness. But she quickly snapped out of it and, with a cough and a second to breathe, the same creepy smile was back on her face as she poured the water into Frisk’s cup.

“Excellent choice, dearest one,” Toriel said cheerfully as she poured water into her own teacup and selected her tea bag. Once she had stirred the tea around, Frisk noticed the color was a dark red. Almost a _blood red_. Frisk shivered and stirred their own tea, avoiding the wandering thoughts about what kind of tea Toriel was drinking. They sat in silence, besides the occasional clink of the cup touching the table, and Frisk could feel Toriel’s eyes on them the entire time. Flowey watched Frisk nervously from their place next to the plants, mouthing the words “leave” and “now” every five or so minutes.

Once Frisk was done with their tea, they placed their teacup back on the tray and waited. Toriel was done with her tea as well, and she instructed Frisk to stay put while she cleaned up the kitchen and grabbed some pie. Frisk shivered at the thought of being faced with more of Toriel’s pie, so they took this opportunity to get up and explore and, if they were lucky, sneak out of there unnoticed. Frisk was sure to bring Flowey with them as they got up and made their way over to the bookshelf.

The books, despite being neatly placed, were actually very dusty. Frisk could barely make out the titles on the spines, so they just pulled out one at random. Frisk blew on the book to get the dust off, which caused the dust to form a little cloud as it was blown from its place. Frisk coughed from the dust invading their nostrils and swatted the dust away with the hand that was holding the book. If they had used the hand holding Flowey, I doubt that would have gone over nicely with them. Frisk sat down on the floor and placed Flowey beside them so they could both see.  

“The Royal Regime,” Flowey read the cover aloud as Frisk opened the book. They were surprised to see many of the pages torn or had the name “Asriel” written all over them, like on the walls in the main hall. There was one page though, in the middle of the book, that was left perfectly intact. Frisk read the page:

_Many years after the Great War occured, a tremendous new wave of hope crashed over the population of New Home. The queen, Toriel Dreemurr, had finally given birth. One child, a boy, who was promptly named **Asriel**. The kingdom was delighted to see the newest member to the royal family at the child’s crowning ceremony. At only two years old, the young Asriel was crowned prince of New Home. The king did this so that there would be no chance of anyone but his own flesh and blood keeping the throne._

__

_With the birth of Asriel came a great relief, as well as a great responsibility. Asriel was taught about governing a kingdom, fighting, negotiating (though unnecessary in its entirety, since we are the only kingdom below the surface), along with all his other studies. The boy did not get much time to himself, but when he did, many monsters saw Asriel running to the opening near the Ruins. He tended to beautiful golden flowers there, under the warm rays of sun from the surface._

__

_One day, on one of the rare days Asriel was able to escape to his little garden, he found something lying face down in his flower patch. It was a **human**. The human, who had apparently fallen, was unconscious in the flower patch. Instead of killing the human or fleeing from it, which many monsters would have done, Asriel approached the human and brought them home to nurse back to health. This human joined the royal family, though the king was not immediately keen on the idea, and the kingdom was more overjoyed than ever!_

When Frisk flipped the page to read the rest, they found the other half of the page was covered in the word “traitor”, and they were unable to make out what the tiny text was dictating. They stared at the page for a minute, trying to process what they had just read, when a large paw came from above and snatched the book out of Frisk’s lap.

“Now now, nosy one, there are plenty of better books to read than that boring old history book!” Toriel exclaimed, a tad too happily, as she placed the book back on the shelf and retrieved another book for herself. She sat down on the rocking chair and opened the book, titled “72 Uses for Snails”, and put on a pair of glasses that were laying on the armrest. They were reading glasses, no doubt, but the frames were very crooked and one of the lenses was cracked in five different places. Frisk wondered if Toriel noticed that, or if she even needed the reading glasses.

“You know, small one, I find that many of the uses for snails that this book gives can also be used on…. _other_ creatures~!” Toriel stated cheerfully, her smile turning sadistic for a short moment as she laughed at her own twisted joke. Frisk sat on the ground and pretended they hadn’t heard the implication that she was using other monsters in her weird snail recipes. Flowey stared at Frisk, their terror-filled eyes giving Frisk the signal that they needed to bolt out of there. But, no matter how hard Frisk tried to get up and walk away, they were stuck frozen on the ground. They didn’t know what was keeping them glued to their place. Whether the reason be fear of Toriel, fear of leaving the Ruins, or even _pity_ for Toriel and her situation, they just did not know, and Flowey seemed to notice their distress as well.

“It’s been so long since I’ve had company, tiny one,” Toriel remarked, “But, with company like you, it feels as if I’m still alone in here….You know, since you don’t talk much….Or at all, really. I don’t believe I’ve heard you speak.” Suddenly, she rose to her feet, a paw placed over her mouth in shock. “Why, I don’t think I even know your name!”

Frisk gulped; they didn’t want to have to keep repeating their name over and over, but there was no other way to tell her their name. Toriel walked briskly over to Frisk and crouched down in front of them.

“Now tell me, unknown one, what is your name?” Toriel asked. Frisk sat frozen, their eyes transfixed to the floor. They could feel sweat forming under their bangs, Toriel’s eyes baring through them. Their throat dried up and their belly churned with anxiety. They attempted to speak, but the weighty pressure from Toriel’s intense stare left them speechless. They sputtered and stuttered as Toriel’s patience grew thin.

“Child, tell me your name,” She said sternly, her eyes darkening. Frisk, startled and afraid, scooted away from her until their back was up against the wall. Toriel followed them, the aura around her suddenly growing malicious. She looked as if she was about to swallow Frisk whole as she leaned closer to them. Frisk’s eyes began to dart, looking everywhere but directly in front of them, as they panicked internally. They knew that sign language wouldn’t help in this situation, since monsters probably don’t know ASL, and Toriel doesn’t know that Frisk is selectively mute. They have nothing to write with, so writing their name is out of the question too. The only way they could get Toriel to calm down was to say their name, but that was impossible with Frisk’s current rising levels of anxiety and fear.

“Frisk,” Frisk looked over to who spoke. They saw Flowey, closer to the bookshelf where Frisk had left them, standing as stiff as a flower could be. “Their name is Frisk.” Toriel turned to the source of the voice and looked at Flowey, her red pupils having a sort of eerie glow. Flowey flinched as Toriel came closer. If flowers could look pale, Flowey was the exact definition of that. Toriel inspected Flowey, making a “hmm” sound the whole time, and then suddenly popped up and looked at Frisk once more.

“Is that true, silent one?” She asked, “Is your name Frisk?” Frisk nodded their head rapidly, so hard they almost hit their head against the wall behind them. Toriel smiled once more, her previous frustration gone in an instant. “Frisk….that is a very nice name! It is a pleasure to meet you, Frisk!” She stepped closer and extended a hand to Frisk. Frisk slowly reached their hand out to Toriel’s, anticipating something horrid, and Toriel slowly shook their hand before yanking them quickly to their feet.

“You can go sit back down if you’d like, quiet one, and I’ll bring you some pie that you avoided earlier~” Toriel said in a sing-song tone as she bounded into the kitchen.

At this point, Frisk was certain their heart was just going to burst out of their ribcage and run away, judging from how fast and hard it was pounding in their chest. They knew now that if they didn’t leave they would probably be pulled into another awkward, tense, and mildly dangerous situation. And Frisk was also certain that there was no feasible way they would be able to handle another one of those. So they scooped Flowey off the ground and silently made their way out of the room.

They were back in the main hall, the iron smell in here much more tolerable now than it was several minutes ago, and their head darted around everywhere to find a way out. Flowey wasn’t talking, their eyes wide and mouth left slightly agape, so Frisk had to find their own way out. They made their way down the hall and entered another hallway, a couple doors on the left side. Frisk quietly opened the first door and entered.  

This room was probably the most pristine room in the entire household. It was a child’s bedroom, though it looked as if no one has slept in there in many years. Despite this, everything was neat and pristine; the bookshelf and dressers polished, the bed made, and the floor swept. This room smelt like butterscotch candy and sunflowers, and Frisk wondered why such a room would exist in such a woman’s house. Did she even have a child?  

  
  
Frisk thought back on the passage they read in the book they selected from Toriel’s bookshelf.  

_The queen, Toriel Dreemurr, had finally given birth. One child, a boy, who was promptly named **Asriel.**_

Yes, she did have a child. Or, at the very least, she _had_ a child. A child named Asriel. A child whom she must have loved very deeply, for she has written his name on so many things in her house. A child whom she might have lost unexpectedly, Frisk assumed. No mother would act like this with a living child.

Frisk suddenly thought back to their own mother, now cold in her deathbed. They remembered all of the things their mother did and protected them from. How she went into a facility just so Frisk would not have to deal with the dangerous things she was doing to her body. How she would always call Frisk from the facility and update them on her status. How she would always sing them a lullaby or tell them a story over the phone when Frisk could not sleep. Frisk remembered the many nights spent in foster homes, lying awake and unable to sleep, and how they would hum a tune to themselves that their mother used to hum to them as a baby. Frisk remembered the third time their mother came back from the facility, and the knitted sweater she made for them while she was away. The very same sweater Frisk is wearing now, and tends to wear most every day.

Mothers had their flaws, yes it is true. But _no mother_ would allow themselves to become this broken if their child was alive and well and in their care.

Frisk left the room immediately after that.

They quietly entered the next room, and this room was a mess. An absolute catastrophe.

The bed seemed to be the only thing that wasn’t ripped, burned, broken, or had claw marks all over it. There was charred pages of books on the floor, as well as clothes dirtied red by something unknown. “Asriel” was written all over this room too, but along with that was the phrase “I’m sorry” which was written in a red substance over and over on the wall closest to the bed. Frisk made the assumption that this was Toriel’s room, and that assumption was confirmed once they found the, surprisingly in-tact, journal on the ground. Frisk flipped open the journal and skimmed through it, but found nothing was coherent. Either everything was written one word over the other, or it was in a language they could not decipher. The only thing Frisk could read out of that journal was a page closer to the back. It said this:  

  
  
_I was not able to save **them**. I was not able to save **him**. So why does the kingdom expect me to be able to save the king? He is a tyrant and he will run the kingdom until his dying breath. That is why he banished me here, so I would not further affect his ruling. My existence was useless once we lost **them both**._

__

_So why should I even save **myself**? I can hear the whispers in my dreams, inviting me to their parade. I can feel myself slowly giving up, so why do I insist on resisting? I have no purpose without **them**. No lifeforce. No soul. No **determination** to keep me going. So why keep going? I might as well give in...I might as well…_

The next few lines are smeared with a red substance before the final phrase Frisk was able to read:

_**I did it…...And I’m sorry…..** _

Frisk closed the journal slowly and stared at it in thought. What could she have meant by the last line, Frisk wondered. What did she do? Frisk had no time to think, for after that they could hear Toriel’s footsteps begin again. She was going to discover them missing from the room and panic, then she would go on a hunt for them. They didn’t dare wonder what she would do if she caught them in her room reading her journal.  

They snuck out of Toriel’s room and made their way to the last door as quickly as possible. Flowey wasn’t even a thought in Frisk’s mind, though they were still silently in Frisk’s grasp, as Frisk scrambled to the last door before Toriel could discover their absence. There was a sign tied to the knob that said “Room Under Renovations”, but Frisk paid it no mind as they opened the door and slipped inside.

You know, sometimes it is best to read cautionary signs. Frisk learned this lesson as they gazed in horror at the room before them.

There were only three major aspects to the room; a large table, a bathtub, and three buckets all placed in a row. What do those things have to do with each other, you may ask?  

  
  
Oh, they have _a lot_ to do with each other.

The table had what appeared to be the remnants of a poor, defenseless monster, most of their body turned to dust. Whatever was salvaged from the decaying body was tossed into the bathtub, which appeared to be sealed with some magical force that kept the parts fresh. The buckets were filled with dust, save for the last one, which was filled with tea bags. The very kind of tea bags Toriel chose in their tea time a little while ago. The walls in this room were smeared with a red substance, which Frisk now assumed to be blood, and the phrase “I’m sorry” was written on the walls with blood.

Frisk was certain they were going to be sick at this point. Flowey, now snapped out of their weird trance, looked around the room in disgust and fear.

“F-Frisk, we gotta get out of here. Th-This….is sick,” Flowey said, “I knew Toriel was chopping them up and cooking them, but I never thought...I….I never could have imagined that this….oh no…..Oh no oh no oh no. Frisk, we need to leave. We need to leave right now!” Flowey was panicking now, but Frisk was barely able to focus on their words. They just kept staring at the monster on the table, sadness pricking at their very soul. Whoever would decide to do this is sick and twisted, Frisk thought. Flowey continued to speak in a crazed manner, as if speaking was the only thing keeping them on this plane of existence.

“Frisk, we have to leave now! If we don’t, then she’ll….We have to leave! Toriel will….Frisk! Come on! I don’t want you….L-Let’s just go, Frisk! Go right now! _Frisk_!!” Frisk began to slowly back up towards the door, expecting an easy exit like before. They knew what they needed to do now; they were going to go down the set of stairs that was in the main hall. If the exit to the Ruins wasn’t up here, then it was going to be down there.

Sadly, their easy exit was not so easy. They felt a cloth on their back, making them freeze. Flowey continued to babble until they noticed the change in mood in the room. Suddenly, they shut their mouth. Then, as slow as possible, as if Death was waiting behind them, Frisk turned around and looked up.

Yellow eyes with red pupils stared back down, and the glint of a butcher’s knife shone from a white paw.

**  
**“Now now, disrespectful one, don’t you know that it is very rude to snoop around your host’s home~?”


	6. The Cord Snaps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For some reason, I managed to get another chapter out this weekend!! So consider yourselves lucky!!! I'll probably get another chapter out sometime this week, since this section is ending and I want to end it before I get really busy, but you can't always be sure with my writer's block!!! I hope you guys are enjoying this so far and I always enjoy your feedback!!! Have a nice day, and thanks for reading this thus far!!! Also I'm sorry this chapter is short, I had these last 3 chapters mapped out as to where I wanted to stop and start them, so this is essentially because of that!!

It is at this time that I feel the need to explain to you a few things about monsters and their bodies. You see, monsters do not consist of the same things as us humans do. They are composed mainly of the intense magic, determination, and hope that emit from their souls. Their soul is essentially like every other working organ in our body, but they are able to manifest organs inside for things such as digesting food or breathing. Many monsters require nourishment to keep their soul replenished, but some do not.

Now when a monster is damaged, their soul is essentially the only thing being hurt. During battles or simple quarrels, if a monster is hurt it does not show on their body. Yes, they may get a scratch or two, but the majority of damage is directed at their soul. Souls protrude from monsters bodies during fights, which is how they get damaged. Each monster has a different color soul, but every monster has the same shape of soul; the shape of a heart. Many monsters believe it is because the soul manifests the entire concentration of love and kindness that a monster contains.

Humans work much like monsters when battling them, which you will see as we progress with Frisk’s tale. Humans have a variety of organs that keep them running, but their soul is also a very important part of them. If their soul becomes broken, their organs shut down and they die. But humans, unlike monsters, have very powerful souls that remain even after the person containing the soul has passed. These souls can be taken by others or they will just float away and eventually dissipate in the higher atmosphere.

Monsters, however, pass much differently. Monsters have much weaker souls, compared to humans, so when they die their soul dissipates immediately. Their body is then turned to dust, since the body has essentially no other components to it but the soul projecting it. That dust remains on this world like human bodies do, but many monster rituals end up sprinkling the dust over the monster’s favorite item or place.  

As you have seen with Toriel’s secret room, some monsters, and past humans, have been able to figure out exactly how much pain a monster can go through before it passes. The key to keeping a monster alive during a battle or during other situations is to deliver a large amount of pain to an external body part, but then give the monster time to recuperate. This allows the maximum amount of time the monster can live whilst injured before it dies.

Why did I tell you all this? Well, I think it makes understanding this tale a lot easier when you know these things ahead of time. Anyway, back to matter at hand.

Frisk trembled violently as they gazed up in horror at Toriel. The room was quite dark, so it was impossible to make out what facial expression she was making, but her eyes glowed a deep, fiery blood red that demonstrated the amount of immense anger she was feeling. Toriel took a step forward, thus causing Frisk to take two steps back. Toriel reached her arm out towards the wall and flicked on a little switch which turned on the lights. Once the room was illuminated, Frisk could see perfectly the sick, twisted, scowl-like smile Toriel had forcibly plastered onto her face. The butcher’s knife she held in her hand looked old and slightly rusted, though the darkened metal might be from another source other than rusting. She played with the knife idly in her hands as she shook her head disappointedly at Frisk.

“Tsk tsk tsk,” Toriel tutted, “I really should have put a lock on this door.” She looked back to Frisk and shrugged. “Well, foolish one, I suppose there’s no hiding from it now. You’ve caught me…. _red_ -handed.” She laughed once more at her pun before pausing to take another step closer. Frisk backed up once more.

“What’s the matter?” Toriel asked innocently, “Afraid of me, little one?” Frisk did not peel their eyes away from Toriel’s moving figure, fearful of her every movement, as they continued to back up. Flowey was floored by all that was occurring before beginning to speak again.

“Y-You’re crazy, you know that!?” Flowey shouted, “Absolutely nuts! How could any monster take innocent lives and then _drink_ their remains?!” Toriel seemed to be ignoring Flowey’s remarks as she smiled down at Frisk. Flowey continued to shout at Toriel as Frisk backed away from Toriel. They continued this, until they hit the table, which thus caused them to jump.

Imagine the tension in the room, at this point, like a rope being pulled at on both ends. Now imagine Frisk as a pair of scissors, slowly getting closer to the tightened rope. With that jump, Frisk had managed to cut the cord on the built up tension, and all hell broke loose.

Frisk sprinted directly under Toriel’s legs and frantically ran out of the room. They hit the wall just outside the door, but quickly recuperated and continued their hurried dashing. They were just about to make it to the main hall when Flowey looked behind.

“Frisk, duck!!!!” Flowey shouted. Frisk did not even question the command and ducked. They looked above them just as the butcher’s knife came whizzing a mere inch above their head, landing firmly in the wall not too far in front of them. Frisk’s movements did not halter, though they were frightened by the accuracy of Toriel’s knife-throwing, and continued their path down the steps and to the bottom floor of the house.

Frisk ran down the hall, refusing to look behind them, as they could hear Toriel’s footsteps a yard behind. Suddenly, balls of fire were landing on either side of them, and they yelped in surprise. Flowey took the lead of looking behind to see what was causing the balls of fire to suddenly shoot, and they saw Toriel was the cause. Apparently, she had fire magic and was using it to her full ability to stop Frisk. Flowey turned back around, panicked and afraid for Frisk, and encouraged them to keep running. Frisk turned a corner and saw a large, ornate door only a yard or two ahead. The sighting of the door gave Frisk enough determination to quicken their running to a full-on dash.

But they were not fast enough.

Without warning, a great wall of fire sprang up in front of the door, causing Frisk to skid to a halt. They looked around desperately for another way out, but more of the floor was engulfed in flames. Soon they found themselves trapped in a circle of fire with a figure standing on the other end. A figure that did not seem too happy to be in this situation.

“I did not plan on harming you, young one,” Toriel said, her face darkened by the fire’s growing shadow, “I only wished to keep you safe….to keep you in my care...like _before_ ….” Frisk hands began to tremble, their grip on Flowey weakening, as they gazed at Toriel. “But now...you’ve found me out, and you’ll never want to stay...And if this is the way you choose to leave, then so be it…” Toriel’s hands twitched and suddenly fireballs were held in both hands. Her chest began to glow a bright white, like freshly fallen snow, as a white heart protruded from her chest.

She looked up now, and her maddened expression had intensified, but her eyes were sad, longing, and streaming with tears.

“I will just kill you and take your soul, then!! So then _I_ can become the most powerful monster in the Underground!! _I_ will defeat Asgore, take the remaining six souls, break through the barrier, rule the filthy surface, and get all the things _I_ have always wanted! That _I_ have always deserved!!” Toriel began to laugh the most horrid laugh Frisk had ever heard. As she was cackling, Frisk began to notice a strange red light beaming from beneath their face. They looked down toward the source and saw a glowing red heart protruding from their chest, much like Toriel’s. Flowey looked up at Frisk and smiled.

“Well, Frisk, meet your soul. And, also, meet your first fight.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be clear, monsters and humans do not have extra soul appendages that come out of their chest during battles. A soul is sort of like a...spirit that just leaves the body. It doesn't go too far in front of the chest, like an inch or two, but I wanted to make a way to incorporate the usage of souls in this AU with the normal battling stuff you see in the actual game!! Except this time around, the monsters also show their souls!!!


	7. The Ruins' End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp everybody, this is it for the Ruins section!!! The final chapter with our darling Toriel!!! Hooooly moly I can't believe I've gotten this far!!! This series is incredibly fun for me to write, so I really sincerely hope you guys are enjoying what is coming out of this!! 
> 
> And hey, don't be sad about being away from Toriel now. Cause you know who we get to see next?? That's right, it's my favorite skeletons!! 
> 
> But, uh, this will probably be it for like the next two weeks or so. As I've mentioned before, I have a show choir tour that starts next Monday and goes until the 16th. Then I'm in school until the 23rd, and then it's Christmas break!!! So probably in late December you guys will see another chapter. Unless, of course, I get a night like tonight where I just bust out a whole section out of nowhere!! 
> 
> That all being said, I hope you guys are doing wonderful, thank you all for your feedback (I appreciate it loads), and I hope you enjoy this final part of the Ruins!!!!!

The flames licked their red wisps closer and closer to the ceiling, desperate for oxygen, as Frisk’s knees buckled. They looked on to Toriel, her face now stiff as she raised her paws. Flowey was silent in Frisk’s hands, and Frisk eventually set them down as far away from the fire as possible. The flames didn’t even seem to matter to either party as they stared each other down.

Frisk did not want to fight. Every single tiny inch in their body was just screaming at them to rush up to Toriel and hug her and tell her everything’s going to be okay.

But it’s not okay, and Frisk knows that. Toriel does too.

Nothing in this miserable underground world will **_ever_** be okay.  

Toriel took a step forward and began hurling her fireballs at Frisk. Frisk barely managed to dodge the first one, but was hit by the other. They felt a sharp pain jolt through their whole body, but did not find themselves to be burned or on fire. Instead, the only signs of damage on Frisk was a tiny little singed patch on their shorts, but the rest of them was fine. Their soul continued to float outside of them, and Frisk had barely any time to process why the fire didn’t set them aflame when more fireballs were shot at them.

Flowey watched in misery as Frisk scrambled to avoid the fireballs and getting hit regardless. Toriel was relentless, her facial expression unreadable at this point as she unleashed her full force on Frisk.

“Give up now, child,” Toriel said coldly from her place as she shot more fireballs, “I will kill you eventually, so you might as well surrender so your death will not be as gruesome.” Frisk looked at her, their whole body wracked with pain, but they said nothing. They merely jumped out of the way of the next attack and focused on dodging. Toriel seemed to slow down her attacks at this point, as if something in the way Frisk was acting was hindering her for a moment, but then she raised her hand.

Suddenly, from the fire creeping up to the ceiling on the left side of Frisk, a hand of fire rose and slashed down at Frisk. Frisk was just barely able to duck before the hand passed by them and another one from the right slashed down. This went on for a minute or so until Toriel stopped that attack and continued with her fireball barrage.

The attacking seemed almost never ending, at this point, and Frisk could feel their body growing weaker with every failed dodge. Their soul, which was glowing brightly in the beginning, was very dull. Flowey knew that was a sign that Frisk was on their last legs, but they were so wracked with fear that they could only make out choked sobs. How it was possible for a flower to cry, I do not know, but Flowey was indeed weeping the entire time. They feared for Frisk. They feared for themselves. They feared for _Toriel_. It was not an easy thing for Flowey to watch, and just when they thought Frisk might have a chance of making it out of this place alive, Toriel sent one more fire hand down and delivered a brutal blow to poor Frisk. They cried out in pain as they collapsed to the ground. Flowey watched them fall and screamed out in horror.

They knew what was next.

“No!! Frisk!!”  

  
  
They’ve seen it so many times before.

“Frisk you have to get up!! Frisk!!”  

With so many humans.  

“Frisk please!! _Please_ get up!!!

They remember all of six of them.  

“Frisk!!”  

  
  
They remember the looks on their faces.

“ _Frisk_!!!”  

  
  
As Asgore tore their souls directly from their bodies, leaving the bodies crumpled up on the floor.

“ _Frisk please_!!”  

  
  
They remember the feeling of hopelessness as their body, long ago, collapsed. The crushing weight of the situation pushing down upon them. They remember the horror-filled screams and the tears being shed. They remember it all. And now they’re going to see it all over again.

“ **FRISK!!!** ”  

  
  
In a face, a soul, a _life_ , too familiar.

Frisk was breathing heavy, their face toward the ground, as they heard Flowey’s desperate calls. They wanted to get up, but every muscle in their body was tense and protested Frisk’s every attempt to rise. They sniffled, whimpers leaving their throat as they cried. The intense heat from the flames was gone now, and Frisk didn’t bother to look up and see why. They could hear footsteps approaching them, causing them to whimper more. Just like Flowey, they knew what was next.

“Get up, human,” Toriel said harshly, but Frisk did not move. They remained on the ground, their face to the floor, and cried. Toriel grabbed them by the back of their shirt and hoisted them into the air. Frisk was forced to meet Toriel’s stare. Her face was hard now; no mad swirling around in her eyes or wicked smile on her face. Her eyes looked reddened, disregarding her already red pupils, and it appears as if she had been crying as much as Frisk was.

“This is the end, little one,” Toriel continued, “With your soul in my possession, I will overthrow the king and absorb the remaining six souls. I will leave this wretched hole and wreak havoc on the surface!” She laughed, attempting a crazed laugh, but it only came out bitter and forced. “I shall have everything I’ve ever needed all at _my_ disposal!!” She summoned a fireball in her free hand, and Frisk looked at it in horror.

“All the company!! All the _victims_!!” She continued, her voice growing louder, “All the free time to try new recipes!! All the power!!” Her voice was now practically booming throughout the hall and the fireball in her hand was growing bigger. “Once I am on the surface, I can get the one thing I have always wanted!! That I have always _desired_ to keep!!” Frisk was about to shut their eyes and wait for their doom, but something about the way Toriel was speaking made them pause and look toward her. She was no longer acting like the mad, overly peppy Toriel Frisk had first met.

No, now the mask was coming off, and Frisk could hear the desperation in her voice. She sounded lost and broken, as if her whole world was just ripped from her hands.

“I will finally have a _**child**_!! A _**child**_ all my own!! A _**child**_ I will never, _ever_ , lose!!” Toriel shouted at last, and she dropped Frisk as she began to weep. Frisk sat up immediately and looked at Toriel, who was now full-on sobbing into her hands. She fell to the ground, her face in her hands as she cried toward the floor. Frisk felt their heart pang with sorrow.

That’s all she’s ever wanted all this time. She’s a broken mother, and she just desires to be a mother once more.

Frisk made a bold move and rose to their feet before hugging Toriel. She paused her sobbing, moving slightly to look at Frisk. Frisk looked to her and smiled the sweetest, most genuine smile Toriel has seen in decades.

Their smile was like a flashback to Toriel, and she was suddenly brought back to her glory days. Watching as her children ran around, she remembered the warmth that would spread throughout her body whenever her children turned to her and smiled. The smiles of the innocent can melt even the iciest of hearts, it seems, and Toriel could feel herself coming back together.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around Frisk and pulled them close. Something about Frisk brought Toriel back, and she could feel the filth of her old ways clinging less forcibly on her subconscious. She knew it, as soon as she saw Frisk in the hall, that they were someone she wished to care for. That she wished to protect. That she wished to _love_ with all of her heart.

“Oh, my child, I am so sorry,” Toriel said into Frisk’s shoulder, “I never wanted to hurt you, but you just remind me of someone I loved very dearly, and I could not bear to watch someone like you leave.” She moved away from Frisk to look at their face and wiped away a stray tear. “I know now that you will do as you wish, and it would be selfish to keep you here for myself. Especially in the...condition I have left the Ruins.”  

  
  
Toriel rose to her feet and smiled warmly at Frisk. “You have so much love in that soul of yours, Frisk. I do hope that, while you make your way through the Underground, you put that love to good use. There are many corrupted monsters out there, but there are also many scared ones. Many that are just desperate for a way out. Show them the love you have shown me, and I guarantee that your love will change them forever.” She ruffled Frisk’s hair, in a much more gentle way than the first time she did, and continued, “Do be careful though, my child. The next faces you see I know will not be friendly. But...I know you will find a way to make them change.”  

  
  
Toriel crouched down to hug Frisk one more time, whispering something incoherent in their ear, and then stood again. Frisk looked up at her and smiled and then turned to look at Flowey. They were smiling now, happy to see the outcome, and smiled wider when Frisk came to retrieve them.

“Ready to go, Frisk?” Flowey asked once they were safe in Frisk’s hands. Toriel made a noise of realization before telling Frisk to wait and then running back down the hall. When she returned, she held a little tupperware container with a big slice of pie inside. She held it out to Frisk.

“Here, my child, in case you get hungry!” She said. Frisk looked at the pie skeptically and Toriel noticed. “Oh, it is not filled with anything bad! Just butterscotch custard and cinnamon! Oh, I do hope you like butterscotch and cinnamon, my child, I did not even ask if you did.” Frisk smiled and took the pie, which assured Toriel that they were okay with the contents of it. She smiled in content.

“Well, off you go, then,” Toriel said. Frisk nodded and turned around. They opened the door and took a step inside the next room. Before they shut the door, they turned back to Toriel and waved. She continued to smile as she waved back, then they shut the door.

Frisk was now in another very dark room with a singular light showing on a patch of grass. Frisk ignored it and kept walking down the long hallway.

They knew what was coming next was not going to be easy. They would need to be stealthy and careful of everything. But, they also needed to be kind, like Toriel said. They were sure to find many more hostile monsters up ahead, and they knew that each one would have a different way of calming them. Whatever was up ahead, though, Frisk knew they were ready.

They approached the next stone door and looked down at Flowey, who was looking back up at them.

“Are you ready, buddy?” Flowey asked. Frisk nodded and pushed open the door.

No matter the situation, monster, or feeling, Frisk knew they would never be more ready than they were now. With their body slightly weakened from the fight, some things for right now would be difficult, but their soul was overflowing with unbridled **_determination_**.

And you’ll soon see just how far that **_determination_** will take Frisk.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Btw while I'm not posting anything, you are always free to come ask me things over on my personal tumblr blog (@autistic--amethyst) and my writing blog (@michywritings)!! Also if you wanna like just...talk to me, you can do that! I'm a lonely nerd, so I'll always be happy to chat!


	8. Snowy Siblings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeey!!! It has certainly been a while since this has been updated, hasn't it? Welp, it's just in time for the new year, so that's good! Left this year off on a fairly productive note!!! 
> 
> Honestly, thank you all so much for a great year, despite this only starting toward the end of it. All this support makes me feel grounded and safe, as a young writer who always thought their stuff was never good enough. Y'all mean the world to me, and I appreciate each and every nice person who crosses my path! 
> 
> This being said, due to circumstances that occurred a while back, I ask that you refrain from any sort of extremely rude or critical reviews of this. While I appreciate criticism, I am also a minor with extreme self-respect and self-love issues, as well as Autistic and a victim of online harassment. I don't say that stuff to spark a pity party, but just know that what you may think is helpful might come off as very harsh to me. I'm trying my best here, in terms of grammar stuff, so cut me some slack. 
> 
> Well, I hope you guys have a wonderful New Years Eve n junk!! Drink and eat what ya want!! Welcome 2016 with open arms and let's hope it all goes well for us in this upcoming year!!!

Frisk found that the first thing they experienced when they opened the stone door was a sudden, harsh gust of cold air. Frisk shivered from the temperature change but persisted through the doorway regardless. Flowey began shivering as well from the cold.

 

Once Frisk had stepped through the door and the door shut behind them, they observed their surroundings. Large oak trees, or some variety of a large sturdy tree, stood tall and almost created a sort of wall on either side. The trees were also barren and Frisk could swear they saw a flash of red dart behind the line of trees to their left. The sky was gray and cloudy above them, though Frisk wondered if that was because of the fact that they were inside a grey mountain or because of the clouds that were producing light snowfall.

 

Come to think of it, precipitation, such as snow, seemed very out of place in a world that’s under the Earth. But, figuring that Frisk has seen such things as talking flowers, flames protruding from monster’s hands, and their own soul leaving their body to manifest outside of them in a fight, they didn’t exactly question the snow that clung to the ground at their feet or that glittered in the air.

 

They didn’t observe their surroundings for long, once their thin shoes started to feel slightly damp. Frisk knew if they didn’t keep moving, their poor shoes would get soaked and their feet would get very cold. They walked quickly through the snow, relishing in the soft crunching sound made beneath their feet. Snow was rare where Frisk lived, though they have experienced several harsh winters in their life, and they have always loved running in the powdery white snow when it’s first fallen.

 

They walked down this snowy path for a while until they came across a large branch in the middle of the path. Frisk stopped and looked down at the branch.

 

“Hm, looks like it fell off one of the trees,” Flowey observed thoughtfully. Frisk attempted to move the branch with their foot, but found that the branch was too heavy to be budged from its place. Without any further thoughts on the branch, Frisk stepped over it and continued on their way. The crunching of feet on snow and the blowing wisps of wind were the only sounds Frisk could hear. They were content with the silence, though something about it unnerved them.

 

The last time it was this quiet, Frisk had come into contact with Toriel.

 

Suddenly, there was a loud snapping noise, causing Frisk to whip their head around. They noticed that, a few feet behind them, the branch that was lying there was now broken into bits. Frisk felt their heartbeat quicken, and they wasted no time in turning back around and walking faster. Flowey was unnerved, but didn’t speak in fear of the unknown. Frisk hurried along down the path, their breaths coming out in little puffs of steam, occasionally turning their head around to see if anyone was following them. At one point, Frisk saw a figure dash into the treeline behind them, thus causing them to sprint down the path.

 

Up ahead, about a yard or so, Frisk was able to see a little bridge with very large wooden bars sticking out in front of it. For some reason, Frisk felt determined to get to that bridge, and in a matter of seconds they were there. But, once Frisk had stopped to take a gasp of air, they heard slow crunching behind them, like an extra pair of feet was still walking slowly in the snow. Their heart lurched in their throat as they stood completely still, eyes wide and fearful as the footsteps finally came to a halt behind them.

 

“Human,” A voice said behind Frisk, “didn’t your mother ever teach you manners? Turn around and shake my hand,” Frisk hesitated, but ultimately turned around in fear of what might have happened if they didn’t. They slowly lifted their eyes to the figure, who was surprisingly only an inch or so taller than them, and almost jumped clear out of their skin when the figure quickly extended their hand. Frisk looked down to Flowey. who was looking back up at Frisk nervously.

 

“Do it,” Flowey whispered to Frisk. Frisk hesitantly extended a hand out to the figure’s. Once Frisk’s hand grasped the figure’s, Frisk noticed how cold the hand was. Cold and _boney_.

 

Suddenly, Frisk found themself being yanked forward and thrown onto the cold, snowy ground. Frisk landed face-first in the snow and Flowey coughed from the snow being shoved in their face. Frisk could hear chuckling from above them, and when they rolled over they saw that the figure was laughing. They could also finally see what the figure actually was, and what they saw surprised them a little.

 

A short skeleton in a black jacket, black and gold basketball shorts, red shirt, gold socks, and red and white shoes was standing there. Frisk noticed the skeleton’s teeth were fairly sharp, and one tooth was golden. The skeleton’s right eye socket glowed with a tiny ball of red light, which slightly frightened Frisk. Though short in stature, this monster had an air of mystery and strength around it, which was enough to cause Frisk to scoot slowly away. The skeleton was still laughing to itself as Frisk stood and retrieved Flowey from the snow. Frisk looked to Flowey, their eyes asking Flowey if they knew who this was at all, and Flowey shrugged, showing that they had no idea who this skeleton was.

 

“Man, you’re an idiot!” The skeleton cackled out, doubling over in laughter, “If I had actually wanted to do anything harmful, I could’ve just ripped your damn heart out just then!” The skeleton was laughing as if what they just said was the funniest thing in the world, and Frisk wondered if every monster here had an equally sick sense of humor or if it was just their luck to meet all the ones with the sick humor and cheesy puns. The skeleton finally stopped laughing and turned to Frisk.

 

“So, you’re a human, huh?” The skeleton asked, “That’s hilarious. Well, hilarious for me. Probably not you, since just about every monster down here wants your soul so they can overthrow our king and take over the surface themselves.” Frisk expected they were supposed to laugh at that, but the part about being everyone’s target made them shiver and back away instead. The skeleton noticed their fear and smirked, stepping closer to Frisk. “So my name’s Sans. Sans the skeleton. What’s yours?”

 

Oh no, another person asking Frisk for their name. They really didn’t feel like almost dying again from this question. But, luckily for them, Flowey was here to help.

 

“Their name is Frisk,” Flowey said, “and I’m Flowey. We don’t mean you any harm; we’re just trying to get to the Capitol so we can get Frisk out of here.” Flowey straightened themselves out in Frisk’s hands; their stem standing upright and their leaves stiff on their body. Flowey hoped that their appearance would strike some sort of lasting semblance in Sans, but Sans only laughed again.

 

“Frisk and Flowey, eh? Priceless.” Sans laughed, “A human and their plant partner on a journey through the Underground just so only one of them can escape. Yeah sure, I’ll let you have that as your story.” Sans walked closer to Frisk, Frisk not backing away this time, and placed a hand on their shoulder.

 

“You’re lucky I don’t feel like killing you, cause I could if I wanted to. Easily, in fact,” Once more, Frisk felt like they were supposed to feel some sort of way, but it only left them scared. “But, my brother, Papyrus? Not so lucky with him. He’s a human hunting _fanatic_ . Probably would kill you on the spot. So, if I were you, I’d haul it out of here right _now_.” Frisk wasted no time in absorbing Sans’ threat and bolted past him, quickly crossing over the bridge.  

 

Frisk ran into another area and they were able to see a small shack, almost a sort of station, a little ways ahead. They slowed their pace to a stroll and began to more closely observe their surroundings. Suddenly, Frisk felt a poke on their shoulder, thus causing them to jump and spin around. There was Sans, golden tooth glinting and smirk on his face.

 

“That’s my station, right up there,” Sans noted, pointing to the shack up ahead, “Like it? Made it myself. Despite what bullshit my brother may say about me, I will actually get shit done if I really wanna do it.” Frisk looked back at the shack and nodded thoughtfully, though they didn’t really know what Sans was talking about. It was silent, now, with only the wind offering it’s two cents. Frisk heard faint crunching of snow in the distance, beyond where the shack was, and they panicked. They spun their head back to Sans, who was still smirking. Frisk wondered if that smirk was permanent or if they were just really enjoying everything that was happening.

 

“Better run and hide, kid,” Sans warned, “That’s Papyrus.” Frisk spun around to face the shack and frantically looked around for a place to hide. They settled on the shack itself and rushed to it, ducking inside of the shack. They noticed dozens of opened and unopened mustard bottles in the shack, but chose to ignore their oddities to get under the shack’s counter and cover the line of view in a wall of mustard bottles. They held Flowey close as they slowed their breath, listening closely to everything.  

 

The footsteps got close to the shack, then they stopped. The sound of tapping against the shack’s counter sounded above Frisk, and they cowered further against the wall at the sound.

 

“Brother, why are you standing there?” A voice, booming and authoritative, said from outside.

 

“‘Cause I got legs, wanna see ‘em?” Sans replied to the voice. At this time, Frisk felt a little tap on their hand and they looked down to see Flowey looking back at them.

 

“Frisk,” Flowey whispered, “try and peek outside.” The very thought of being seen by whoever was standing near the shack scared Frisk enough to briskly shake their head. “Come on, Frisk! Just poke your head out a little! Pleeeease?” Frisk shook their head again, causing Flowey to pout.

 

“Listen, Frisk, if Sans said that the monster coming was his brother and we _don’t_ actually know _what_ his brother looks like, then how are we supposed to know when to hide? Or be ready to flee? Sans said that he’d kill you on the spot, so if we know who this Papyrus is, then we can be ready for whatever he has in store for you, if he ever does see you.” Flowey explained. Frisk thought hard, then nodded slowly and cleared some of the mustard bottles out of the way so they could peek over the counter. They made sure that only their eyes went over the counter and surveyed the area.

 

Frisk could see Sans and then another, much taller, skeleton facing Sans. Frisk assumed this was Papyrus, and he was dressed in a type of black chest armor with long black shoulder pads that were jagged at the edges. The right side of his chest had some sort of gold writing inscribed onto it, and he wore a red tattered scarf and a red cape. He had long red boots, black pants, and a red belt with a golden buckle. He also wore long red gloves that went to his elbow. His face seemed to be etched in a permanent scowl and neither of his eye sockets glowed like Sans’ right one did.

 

“Well, _why_ are you not just _standing_ in your _station_ , Sans?” Papyrus asked, putting bitter emphasis on his words.

 

“I don’t know, ‘cause it’s cold? ‘Cause this job is boring as hell? ‘Cause maybe _fuck off_ _?_ ” Sans replied. Papyrus made a disgruntled noise and stomped toward Sans.

 

“I don’t care if the job is ‘boring as hell’, you are going to _do it_ or you are going to _get the lights kicked out of you_ , do you understand?” Papyrus said, his gloved hand clenching into a fist to shake in front of Sans’ face. Sans laughed and knocked Papyrus’ hand out of his face before stepping past Papyrus and to the shack. Frisk quickly ducked back under the counter and waited.

 

Sans leaned against the counter and let his head fall back to stare at the sky.

 

“I don’t need to listen to your baby-talk, Paps. I’m over a century older than you, and I _certainly_ know I could kick your ass if you ever crossed me.” Sans stated, letting some snowflakes land on his face. Papyrus scoffed and charged over to Sans, causing Frisk to slink back under the counter completely.

 

“But, just to remind you, you only _have_ 1 HP while _I_ have well over _100 HP_ . So, if _anyone_ would be able to kick the others ass, it would be _me_ kicking _your_ ass.” Papyrus replied, leaning in toward Sans, “So I’d suggest you shut your trap and get to work, **_brother_ **.” Sans lifted his head up and eyed Papyrus. He leaned closer to Papyrus’ face and grinned, then he flicked Papyrus in between his eye sockets.

 

“Fucking. _Try_ . **_Me_ **.” Sans retorted, his right eye glowing with an even brighter red light. It almost looked like fire, and Papyrus quickly understood that what his brother had said was both an invitation and a threat. He growled, bringing his hands in front of Sans’ face and making a motion as if to strangle him, then he composed himself and stood straight. Frisk, with a lot of prodding from Flowey, had managed to peep their head back up and watched; well out of view of Papyrus, thanks to Sans’ large skull. Papyrus rubbed his temples and let out several short breaths.

 

“Can do me a favor, for _once_ , and just do your job without making me so _frustrated_?” Papyrus asked, but Frisk figured that question wasn’t really meant to be answered. Sans pushed himself off the counter and stumbled around Papyrus, going in circles around him.

 

“Nah,” Sans said, “it’s too much fun to fuck with you. You take everything so seriously. Why don’t you just lay back and relax for once in your damn life? I just found another one of those human ‘mixtapes’ that keep getting thrown down here. It’s pretty good, if I do say so myself. Whaddya say you come back to the house with me and we’ll give it a listen together, eh? Sound good, bro?” Papyrus huffed and grabbed Sans’ head, stopping Sans from walking another lap around him.

 

“No, I don’t want to ‘lay back’ and listen to this so-called ‘mixtape’, Sans,” Papyrus replied, “I’m on duty right now and I _have_ to stay vigilant! What if a _human_ came around here? I certainly would not want it getting to Snowdin before I can get it’s soul! Plus, what if it got to **_Undyne_ ** ?? Then _she’d_ have the soul and _she_ would be the one to overthrow the king! And if _that_ happens, then there is absolutely _no way_ for me to take control of this kingdom and rule the Underground! Then I’d never get to conquer the human race and my whole life would basically be over!! I might as well _kill myself_ at that point! What’s the point of living if I can’t torture and terrorize those who oppose me?!” Sans looked slightly defeated during Papyrus’ rant, as if he was actually looking forward to spending some time with Papyrus. His smirk turned into a bitter scowl, rivaling even that of Papyrus’, and he turned away from his brother.

 

“Fine then, if you’re just going to stand here and be a stuck-up prick, go do it somewhere else. I’ve surveyed the area, despite what you may think, and there’s no humans here. Just snow and dead trees,” Sans replied, his voice hollow and sour. He waved his hand dismissively at Papyrus. “So, yeah, fuck off now.” Papyrus turned to Sans, his scowl dropping a little to a slight frown, before he puffed his chest out and marched down the path he came from.

 

There was a beat of silence before Frisk felt it was safe to exit the shack. They held Flowey in their hands and stared sadly at Sans’ form. They were an only child, so siblings quarrels were an odd thing for them to experience firsthand, but they could tell that Sans was reaching out to his little brother. Like he wanted a normal, healthy relationship with Papyrus, but Papyrus was too absorbed in his own work to see that.

 

“Go on, kid,” Sans said, waving Frisk off as well, “He’s probably halfway to Snowdin at this point, so he won’t be of much trouble to ya.” Frisk considered walking over to Sans and comforting him, but they didn’t know what kind of reaction Sans might give to that. 

 

So, with heavy heart and soaked feet, Frisk continued on their way down the snowy path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had much debate with what kind of relationship I was going to give Sans and Papyrus, in terms of sticking to their very positive canon relationship or going for a more toxic one. But, after a particularly frustrating day with my own older brother, I decided to mimic our relationship (that of me and my brother's) for Sans and Papyrus. Meaning that they don't necessarily hate each other, but they do get on each other's nerves a lot. There's a lot of bickering and un-ended arguments. But, one is always hoping for something better to happen in the future. 
> 
> Also, Paps doesn't speak in all caps in text form, just because that would bother the living crap out of me, but he uses a lot more emphasis on words to make up for that. I'd like to think that his actual voice is still just as loud as canon Papyrus' would be, but writing in all caps if I'm not screeching to friends on Skype is kind of weird to me. 
> 
> Another thing to note, Sans curses a lot and Papyrus doesn't. Sans curses cause it pisses off Paps and Paps curses occasionally to mimic Sans. Yeah, this is something me and my brother do too (except I curse just cause and my brother does it to both mock me and just cause)


	9. Making Friends, Missing Fiends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK. FINALLY. I'M SO SORRY. 
> 
> Anyway, here's another chapter!! A lot happened in this one!! That's why it took so long!!! Yeah!!! That's my reason!! (in all seriousness I've had like 2 major writing projects I've had to do plus practice and maintaining schoolwork as Marking Period 2 ended. I haven't had motivation for a while, but we got snowed in today and I decided to cap this one off) 
> 
> Also, I wanna mention that you guys are free to come talk to me on my writing blog about this fic!! Or anything writing-related really!! I know there are like 3 messages I did not answer, but I wanted to keep them cause they were sweet!! 
> 
> So come chat with me at http://michywritings.tumblr.com/ (Also please let me know if you ever make anything based on this fic, I will reblog it and link it in the next chapter's notes!!!!) 
> 
> That all being said, enjoy!!!

Frisk walked down the next path and into a clearing in the trees, the memory of Papyrus and Sans’ conversation still lingering in their brain. Hearing people argue and be so rude to each other was a very new thing for Frisk to see, especially amongst family members. The worst they’d seen of that is when their foster brothers would tease them, but they also barely considered their foster family a family to begin with. It was really just a couple who hated each other, fostering as many children as they can and raking in all the profit from them, meanwhile neglecting them and leaving them to fend on their own. Frisk was always sent back to the same foster home when their mother would go away, being told that they were the only family in town that would take Frisk for the amount of money the local foster agency could offer for them. 

 

Frisk hated that home. It was less of a home and more of a prison, at least to Frisk. 

 

Flowey sensed Frisk’s rapidly decreasing mood and gently patted Frisk’s hand with one of their leaves, jarring Frisk from their thoughts to look down at Flowey. Flowey smiled kindly up at Frisk, their eyes saying they understood Frisk’s pain. 

 

“That conversation bother you too, eh?” Flowey asked. Frisk nodded glumly in response. “Yeah, it bothered me too. I mean, I had a sibling too, but we never argued like  _ that _ . The worst kind of argument we ever had was over who took the last slice of mom’s-” Flowey cut themself off, suddenly looking very lost in their thoughts. Then, they shook their head and smiled once more, confusing Frisk ever so slightly. Flowey looked ahead, trying to steer the discussion away from what Flowey was just saying, and pointed. 

 

“Look!” They called out, “There’s a clearing in this giant tree-wall!!! Let’s hurry up and see the clearing!” Frisk could tell Flowey was only being enthusiastic because they were avoiding any further questioning of what they were about to say, so Frisk left it at that. If Flowey didn’t want to talk about their past, so be it. Not like Frisk was much for talking about their past, either.  

 

After a short walk, Frisk made it to the clearing in the trees. The little snowy path ahead of them broke off into two roads; one going north and one continuing east. Off to the side of the east-way path was a little wooden box, obviously worn from years of sitting there. Frisk walked carefully over to the box, wary of what dangers might be lurking near or in this mysterious box. They touched the box, dusting some of the snow flurries off of it so they can better inspect it. To their surprise, it just looked like a normal box. 

 

A normal box in this very not normal world; how strange. 

 

“Hey! There’s something in the snow next to the box!” Flowey pointed out. Frisk looked to the left of the box and saw a little lump in the snow. They reached down and dusted the snow off of the object, revealing it to be a broken sign. The writing on the sign was smudged and barely legible, but Flowey was somehow able to read it. 

 

“This is a box,” Flowey read aloud. “Heh, I don’t think we really needed the sign to tell us that, eh Frisk?” Frisk looked down at Flowey, their face deadpanned. Flowey laughed nervously and continued. “You can put items in it or take items out. They will still be there when you come across another box. Sincerely, a box lover.” Flowey looked up to Frisk and smiled. 

 

“Seems to me like this is some sort of magical box where you can put your stuff in, and it will still be there when we see another similar box. Sounds handy to me!” Flowey noted. Frisk nodded and opened the chest, setting Flowey inside for a moment. Once they had taken off their bag and placed it inside the chest, they picked Flowey back up and placed them on the snow. Then, they took the time to go through their bag and take everything they can carry that could help them, which included their tattered, old coat and a little granola bar that could fit perfectly in the coat’s pocket. They zipped their bag back up and went to close the box, until they noticed a small pair of pink leather gloves in the box.. Their hands were freezing, so they opted to take the gloves, put them on, and then shut the box. 

 

Once they were done with the box, they picked Flowey back up and made the decision to continue to head east. They made it several feet on the next path before they noticed Papyrus’ towering body walking three feet ahead. It appears that Sans’ statement was wrong, and now Frisk was stuck with nowhere to run or hide. They stood stiff and watched Papyrus walk, fearful of making any noise and alerting Papyrus. Unfortunately for Frisk, they wouldn’t be able to stay hidden for long. A tap on their shoulder caused them to jump, conveniently making them land on a fallen twig. They whipped their head around to see Sans, who just shrugged and waved at Frisk. 

 

“Sorry kid,” Sans said, “I thought Paps would’ve been gone by now.” It was too late for Frisk to run or hide; they were officially trapped between two skeletons. They waited, their back turned to Papyrus, for what they thought was the end of their journey and their life, but nothing had happened. When Frisk had turned back, they noticed Papyrus just...staring. 

 

There was a glint of child-like wonder and glee, hidden deep in the sudden light that appeared from inside Papyrus’ eye sockets. His jaw was slacked open and his body arched slightly in the direction of Frisk, to a degree at which Frisk thought he was simply going to fall over. Then, in an instant after witnessing this drop of character, it was gone. The flames disappeared, leaving two black abysses in their wake, his mouth was brought together in a deep scowl, and he stood straight up. He made carefully slow movements toward Frisk, his boots crunching in the snow being the only sound made in that moment. 

 

“Sans,” Papyrus said, “detain the human.” Frisk looked back at Sans, panicked, but saw that he wasn’t trying to do what Papyrus had told him. 

 

“Nah,” Sans replied, shrugging, “they’re too much fun to mess with. Besides, they listen better than you do.” Papyrus stopped his walk to Frisk and his expression hardened. 

 

“This isn’t a  _ request _ , Sans. This is an  _ order _ .” Papyrus walked at a faster pace toward Frisk, causing Frisk to step back into Sans. Sans grabbed Frisk by the shoulders and forcibly moved them to the side. He then took a step forward, looking up at Papyrus with a cold, bitter fire in his eye sockets. 

 

“And what exactly is backing up this ‘order’, bro?” Sans asked with a harsh laugh. “Those gloved hands your backup? Go ahead, hit me. I fucking  _ dare you _ . I will knock you flat on your tailbone in two seconds  _ flat _ and make you wish you weren’t related to me.” Sans faltered, his smirk dropping to a forlorn look. “Or do you already wish that?” 

 

Frisk had heard that last part, but it seemed Papyrus did not. Or, if he did, he seemed unfazed by it, for he continued to walk toward Frisk. Frisk took several steps back, while Sans took several steps forward. The two brothers began to argue, insults and profanities being slung back and forth, as Frisk’s panicking became more severe. It was becoming increasingly more difficult for Frisk to decipher their own thoughts with the brothers’ yelling beating in their head like a booming drum. Loud arguments, or any sort of yelling in the negative manner, frightened Frisk and made it very difficult for them to concentrate. Frisk had spent many a night, quaking like a hairless animal in the dead of winter, cooped up in their room crying as their mother and her boyfriend argued about this and that.  

 

Flowey watched the skeleton brothers argue, wondering why Frisk hasn’t made a break for it. They could see a perfect way around the brothers and down the path, so why hasn’t Frisk seen it and run?  

  
  
Once they felt the hands on their vessel tremble violently, Flowey understood why Frisk wasn’t moving. Flowey felt a drop hit their head. Then two, three, four. Flowey looked up at Frisk, seeing what they had feared to see; Frisk crying. Flowey began to panic, torn between trying to help Frisk and trying to force Frisk to keep going. They could hear those  **_two voices_ ** , different in tone yet equal in volume, speaking. 

 

_ Help them, they’re only a child.  _

 

**We have to keep progressing. If and when Sans and Papyrus stop arguing, they’re going to see Frisk and charge for them. Get them to go, and then we’ll deal with their current mental state.**

 

_ If we do that, they will never open up to us. They will think we only have one purpose in helping them; to get them out.  _

 

**Isn’t that our only purpose?** ****  
**  
** _ You know that isn’t true. You know Frisk means more to us than just another task.  _

 

**But they are just another task. We get them out and, hopefully, they’ll let everyone know to never come up here again. That is the only way we can protect the surface from monsters like father.**

 

_ “Monsters like father” raised you as one of their own and kept you safe from the harshness of other, stronger monsters that could have easily killed you. Sure, father has changed in these passing decades, but we know why, don’t we?  _

 

**Of course we know why, brother. But, it doesn’t change the fact that monsters like father, Papyrus, and Undyne want this human dead so they can get to the surface first! If we don’t get Frisk out of here as soon as possible, someone will kill Frisk. You know this to be true, brother. We’ve seen it happen so many times before. If we befriend them, they’re just going to die. It’s better we just deal with this one with peaceful indifference.**

 

_ Maybe…  _

 

**You know I’m right.**

 

_ I know….but….they remind me of you….I just want to help them like I helped you….  _

 

**...I know.**

 

Flowey collected their thoughts before they actually began to split and focused on the task at hand; helping Frisk. Flowey stretched out of the water bottle and began to slowly wrap one vine around Frisk’s hands, offering some form of comfort in the little squeezes Flowey’s vines were giving to Frisk’s hands. Frisk stopped their crying to look down at Flowey, their lips trembling as they held back whimpers. Flowey offered them the gentlest, most heartwarming smile they have made in years. Frisk attempted a smile back, but couldn’t from the tears forcing their way back out of their eyes. They hiccuped as Flowey gently let their vines wrap around Frisk’s wrists and further up. 

 

Without any spoken words, Flowey had gotten Frisk to start taking slow, deep breaths to calm their racing heart. And, with the occasional squeezes from Flowey, Frisk was able to calm down enough to focus on the task at hand. 

 

Surprisingly enough, the pair was still arguing,  allowing Frisk to sneak past them with ease. Just as they were about to make a break for it, their shoelaces somehow came untied, which caused Frisk to trip and fall to the ground. 

 

“Don’t look now, bro, but I think you’re one-way ticket to royalty is tryin’ to get away.” Sans said. Frisk lifted their face out of the snow and looked to their shoes, a faint glow of red suddenly fading away from their untied shoelaces. Frisk tilted their head up to look at the two skeletons and they noticed the red flame in Sans’ eye socket glowing with a brighter intensity before it went back to normal. Whatever had just happened, Frisk suspected it was Sans’ fault.  

 

Frisk couldn’t dwell on these thoughts, for Papyrus was after them. Frisk was barely able to scramble to their feet before Papyrus was upon them. Frisk yelped, taking off in a mad dash down the path, the sound of Papyrus yelling after them bouncing through the dead trees. Frisk ran down the remainder of this path and onto the next, spotting a little shack up ahead. They stopped abruptly in front of the shack, which made them fall. They could hear Papyrus’ calls, but they sounded far off, so Frisk figured they had time to find a place to hide before Papyrus could catch them. They got off the ground and brushed the snow off of them, looking around for a place to hide. 

 

“W-Who’s there?” A voice spoke, trembling and soft, causing Frisk to jump. They turned to the source of the voice and saw a dog-looking monster standing hunched over in the shack. They had white fur with black spots in places, and their eyes appeared to be missing, for the sockets were sewn shut. Frisk felt both fear and pity for the dog-monster; they sounded like they could never hurt a fly. Well, they can’t really hurt  _ anything _ , now. 

 

“I-I can see you when you m-move,” The dog spoke again, “Y-You don’t move like Sans or Papyrus so...who’s there?” 

 

“My name is Frisk, and I’m trying to hide from Papyrus. He wants to kill me,” Flowey said, pretending to be Frisk. Obviously, the dog wouldn’t be able to see that it was a flower who responded to them and not Frisk themself, so it was easy to get away with. The dog nodded. 

 

“I-I’m Doggo, and I can help ya h-hide...if you want,” The dog, who’s name was apparently Doggo, offered, “I tend to hide when Papyrus walks by, u-under the counter. Here, come around the side.” Frisk obliged and walked around the side of the shack. There was a click and then part of the shack’s wall opened. Doggo stood inside, offering his paw. Frisk took Doggo’s paw and was gently tugged inside the shack, the secret door clicking shut. 

 

“When they first made these sentry stations, they didn’t build any doors for them...I guess they just expected you to climb over the counter. W-Well, since that would be very difficult, due to my, uh,  _ condition _ , I made myself a door. It opens using a little button on the outside and a little button in here.” Doggo smiled, “I’m v-very good with that kind of stuff, you know. Building things keeps me sane while I sit in here. T-They don’t let you leave your station ever, s-so you kind of have to find something to do or else you’ll end up like...Papyrus…” Doggo shuddered, his grip on Frisk’s hand tightening. Frisk shuddered along with Doggo; they couldn’t imagine how long it took, sitting in these little wooden shacks, before Papyrus snapped. Or maybe he was just always like that? Who knows. 

 

“Excuse me, Doggo, might I ask how you managed to lose your...your, uh….” Flowey started to say, but quickly realized how rude their question might have been and trailed off. Doggo let out a little laugh. 

 

“How I lost my eyes?” He finished for Flowey. “It’s alright, kid, you don’t need to beat around the bush with me. I was in here, God I don’t even remember how long, but I had gotten tired, I remember. I had only closed my eyes for  _ two seconds _ , and then I felt my collar being tugged on.” He pulled at his studded black collar to demonstrate. “It was U-Undyne, the head of the Royal Guard a-and kind of my boss. I tried to apologize and tell her that it wouldn’t happen again, b-but Undyne doesn’t like it when you say stuff like that. She said, ‘You wanna sleep? Fine then, sleep.’ T-Then she...Well, to save you from the details, she had my eyes in her open hand when she was done with me. ‘Now you can sleep forever,’ she said, and then she left. S-So...then I ended up like this! Minus the stitches; Sans did those for me once he found me that night.” 

 

Frisk felt awful for Doggo, the fact that the has no eyes and  _ still  _ has to sit in this little shack all hours. Frisk couldn’t imagine what it was like to be blind. The thought that blind people would never be able to see things like a sunset or their child’s face sounds like such an awful thing to poor Frisk. They wanted to do something, offer him a hug or a very comforting hand squeeze, but the sound of footsteps approaching the little shack startled them. Doggo heard the footsteps and shoved Frisk onto the ground as gently as possible. 

 

“Quickly, under the counter. Cover yourself with this,” Doggo whispered as he picked up a pink quilt from the ground and tossed it in Frisk’s general direction. Frisk crawled under the counter and threw the quilt over both themself and Flowey. Once they were covered, they held Flowey close to their chest, careful to take slower breaths so they could remain unseen and unheard. 

 

Footsteps came up to the shack, two pairs of footsteps. 

 

“Doggo, report,” Papyrus said. Frisk could hear Doggo shuffle around before they responded. 

 

“N-Nothing, sir,” He said. There was a pause. 

 

“Smell anything fishy lately?” Sans asked, “Or hear anything out of the ordinary?” 

 

“N-No weird sounds lately, a-and nothing fishy either...I mean, the only f-fishy thing I’d smell around here is U-Undyne. And I’m pretty sure we’d all know if she was out here by now….” Doggo replied, laughing nervously to mask his nerves. Sans let out a low chuckle, admiring the pun he allowed come to fruition. Papyrus huffed. 

 

“Alright then, that is all we needed to hear, Doggo,” Papyrus said, “You may go back to your work.” Frisk heard footsteps walk away from the shack, but not too far away for Frisk to hear Papyrus mumble, “The human must be hiding farther back on this path, then…” The footsteps walked back to shack. 

 

“Come, Sans, we have business to attend to.” Papyrus said, and then the footsteps started once more as Papyrus walked away. Sans’ footsteps started now, as he chased after his brother. 

 

“Hey, bro, did ya hear that joke I made? ‘Smell anything fishy’? Heh, ya get it bro?  _ Fishy _ ? And then Doggo mentioned-” Sans was cut off by a groan. 

 

“I got the joke, Sans,” Papyrus said, which was responded with more chuckling from Sans. Their bantering and footsteps got quieter and quieter until, eventually, there was no more sound. Frisk heard Doggo shuffle around, opening their secret door and then shutting it.

 

“Okay, Frisk, I think the coast is clear,” Doggo said, “Y-You can come out now.” Frisk slowly took off the quilt and saw Doggo smiling at them, his paw extended to Frisk. The smiling face of Doggo was a sight for sore eyes, minus the slightly disturbing sight of Doggo’s eyelids being sewn shut. Frisk took Doggo’s paw and slowly crawled out from under the counter. Frisk stood and Doggo walked to the secret door, opening it for Frisk. 

 

“You better head on out now, b-before they come back,” Doggo suggested with a smile. Frisk nodded, though the gesture went unnoticed by Doggo, and stepped back outside, the door clicking shut behind them. They walked back around to the front of the shack and saw Doggo leaning against the counter. 

 

“F-Frisk?” He asked, head turning this way and that. 

 

“I’m still here, Doggo,” Flowey replied for Frisk. Doggo smiled at the sound of Flowey’s voice. 

 

“G-Good,” He said, “N-Now if you keep heading down this path, y-you should get to Snowdin before the brothers do. I-I’m sure you know the way, but j-just...be careful, alright? I-I don’t want to hear about you getting killed.” Frisk smiled and walked up to the counter, standing on their tippy-toes so they could give Doggo some nice pets on their fluffy head. Doggo looked shocked after being pet. 

 

“D-Did you just...pet me?” Doggo asked in disbelief. Frisk giggled, amused by Doggo’s reaction. Doggo smiled and leaned down, successfully finding Frisk’s head to give their hair a good ruffle. 

 

“You better get goin’ now, Frisk.” Doggo said. Frisk nodded and started to walk away. 

 

“Say hi to my brother and sister-in-law for me, will ya?” Doggo called out, stopping Frisk. “Their name’s are Dogamy and Dogaressa! Real sweet folks! They’re on patrol right now a ways down, I’m sure you’ll pass them!”  

 

“Will do!!” Flowey responded for Frisk while Frisk waved to Doggo. Then, Frisk turned and ran down the path, their interaction with Doggo filling them with  **_determination_ ** to move forward. 


	10. The Trials

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *kicks down door* I am so sorry this has taken so long but I'M BACK!!!! 
> 
> Woooooow it has got to be at least longer than a month since I've updated and I am really sorry for that. A lot has happened in that time that needed my immediate attention, plus some days I just was not feeling up to writing this. But!!! I have a new chapter here and it's really long (ten pages on docs) because I miscalculated how I was going to plot this chapter, so yeah!! (I'll explain in the bottom notes what I had wanted to do, so you don't have to see that here if you don't care.) 
> 
> We got through alllll of the puzzles in this chapter, and I'm really sorry if they're all terribly written (the spaghetti part I know comes earlier, I just happened to have forgotten, but it was important to have that lil bit in there so I put it in later) and I'm also sorry that like the ending isn't really edited. I'm tired and I told myself "no sleep until you finish this damn thing off" 
> 
> Speaking of sleep, next chapter will be dedicated entirely to what I like to call a "dream sequence" which will be fun cause I get to delve into characterization more, plus some cool shit will be in there and idk I'm excited for the next chapter! 
> 
> So thank you all for sticking around and reading this!!! Friendly reminder that over at www.michywritings.tumblr.com you can ask me questions about this fic, writing shit, or just send a hello!!! I love y'all's sweet messages (as well as comments i love when you comment I'm sorry I'm horrible at replying fuck there's 6 in my inbox i dont have the energy to reply to) and I love when y'all say you love this!!!! 
> 
> Enough chit-chatting, enjoy!!!!

Frisk slowed down their running, once they were far from Doggo’s shack, and sat down on a nearby rock to breathe. They put Flowey’s waterbottle in between their thighs so they could hold them while they ate the granola bar they pulled out of their jacket’s pocket. As they ate, they pulled out the other waterbottle from their bag and poured a small amount into Flowey’s bottle. They smiled, thanking Frisk, and Frisk nodded in response.

 

“So,” Flowey started, “I think I have an idea for our plan of attack.” Frisk cringed at the word “attack”. Flowey noticed and waved their leaves frantically.

 

“N-Not an actual attack!” Flowey assured. “T-That’s just a figure of speech! What I meant is that I think I know what we should do next.” Frisk relaxed and nodded for Flowey to continue. “Well, I don’t know if you realized this, but it’s getting to be nightfall around here.” At Flowey’s statement, Frisk noticed how increasingly dim the area around them was getting. They didn’t exactly know if the Underground could get a night time, figuring there’s no sun or moon down here, but Frisk assumed it was probably getting to be later in the evening, based on the time they left their house at earlier that day.

 

“So we really need to zoom through these paths if we want to get to Snowdin before nightfall. Trust me, you don’t want to be hanging around in these woods when it gets dark. The scenes are often times...graphic.” Frisk shuddered at the thought as they crumpled up their granola bar wrapper and stuffed it in their jacket pocket. They stood and shuddered, the sky growing darker above them.  

 

The wind began to howl and whip as Frisk hurried down the path, not even bothering to check their surroundings. Had they had been as cautious as they previously had been, they would have noticed the red light darting past them. But, it was too late for poor Frisk, and they fell hopelessly into a certain skeleton’s trap.

 

“Human! Cease your movements, lest you wish to face a brutal death!” Frisk immediately stopped walking at the sound of Papyrus’ voice. They looked at Papyrus, who was standing farther down the path with Sans. Petrified, Frisk gripped Flowey’s container tightly.

 

“F-Frisk, don’t move.” Flowey whispered, not breaking eye contact with the skeletons, “I have no idea what either of them have planned. Papyrus is one of the Underground’s most skilled puzzle makers, so I’ve heard through the vine. Apparently his are the most brutal, but also the most flawed.” Flowey smiled and let out a nervous laugh. “Seems kind of counterproductive, if you ask me. Having a flawed puzzle system, but somehow still having the best-”

 

“Hey pothead! Zip ya lip!” Sans shouted, shutting Flowey up real quick.

 

“Better. Thank you, brother,” Papyrus said, giving Sans a curt nod. “Now, as you can see, I have you placed in front of one of my most infamous puzzles; The Electric Slide!” He paused, gesturing to the vast emptiness in front of him. “And, for your information, I did _not_ come up with the name. _That_ was Sans’ idea.” Sans snickered from his place besides Papyrus.

 

“Come on, bro, you gotta admit that ‘Electric Slide’ is a pretty good name for a puzzle involving-” He was cut off by a low growl coming from Papyrus, signaling he wanted silence. Sans didn’t argue this and let his brother continue.

 

“This puzzle may seem like nothing from where you are standing, human,” Papyrus started as he walked back and forth. “But, under this thick snow are thousands of electrical circuits that can spark up enough voltage to fry a being as large as Undyne until she was well-done!”

 

“That’d make for a pretty good dinner, bro. Hey Paps, maybe we should just try this damn thing on her, instead of you having to go through all this trouble with the hu-” Sans was cut off, this time, by a clenched fist being raised. Papyrus’ patience was growing thin, as it would seem. Sans shut up again.

 

“Now, I have these circuits set up in a way that makes a sort of path, with there being only _one_ way to get through. How you would know where that path is, though, is something I doubt you would ever figure out.” Papyrus concluded, letting out a boisterous, cackling laugh afterwards. Then, he dramatically gestured with his cape. “Goodbye, human! I will come back later to harvest your soul from your fried corpse!” He turned and began to walk away.

 

“Hey, bro, wouldn’t it be better if we sat here and waited for the human to die?” Sans asked, looking back to Frisk. “‘Cause like, what if they make it through? Or figure out how to shortcircuit the thing-”

 

“Sans, I don’t have time for this! I have to prepare my speech for when I finally take Undyne’s position and rip her still-beating heart from her cold chest! Let’s go!” Papyrus yelled, continuing to walk away. Sans sighed, pointing back in the direction of Papyrus and shrugging.

 

“Ain’t my brother just the biggest asshole you ever met?” Sans asked, but Frisk figured that wasn’t meant to be answered. Sans laughed, digging one bony hand into his right pocket and rummaging through it. Then, he took out some orb, which he tossed to Frisk. Frisk panicked, dropping Flowey to catch the orb, who fell to the ground with a “Hmph!” Frisk inspected the orb, then they looked quizzically to Sans.

 

“That there is your one-way ticket to surviving this deathtrap,” Sans said, as if he sensed Frisk’s question. “It will glow when you are near a circuit. I set the damn trap up, no thanks to my lil bro, so I decided to set up an easy way to beat it. So, take this as a ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card. And _don’t_ think I’m doin’ this ‘cause I like you or anything. I mean, you seem like a nice human, but,” He winked, “let’s face it; seeing Papyrus this excited about anything is hilarious. He tries so damn hard to hide his enthusiasm behind that big ‘mean tough-guy’ facade that I think _he_ even thinks he doesn’t care. So, I wanna keep you around, for his sake.” With that, he turned and sauntered down the path, muttering some form of luck. Then, in a flash, he was out of sight.

 

Leaving poor petrified Frisk all by themselves.  

  
  
“Hey! Pick me up already, the snow is making me all cold and wet!!” With Flowey, of course.

 

Frisk stood in front of the invisible barrier, both the orb and Flowey in their hands. They extended the orb out in front of them. It didn’t light up, so Frisk took one step forward. They held it out, bringing their arm around in a half-circle to survey the area. It flashed in all directions but straight, so Frisk walked straight. And, as they came to realize halfway through the puzzle, the only way to go in this puzzle _was_ straight.

 

“Huh, I guess this is why Sans shouldn’t make puzzles,” Flowey commented once they had cleared the puzzle and took a few stress-relieving gasps for air. Frisk nodded, looking pale, as they walked slowly on. “I mean, it was awful nice of him to give us that orb. Good thing Papyrus is so entertained with the thought of killing you, Frisk, or else we really would have-” Upon seeing Frisk’s pale, absolutely petrified face, Flowey decided it would be best to shut up for a while.

 

Frisk didn’t even want to think of the reasons why they were even still alive right now. Even back to the beginning of this journey, Frisk has been a victim of life-saving circumstance. For instance, say Frisk hadn’t taken such a long walk earlier that day. Say Frisk hadn’t taken the time to think about the situation with their mother and simply walked home. Their mother’s boyfriend could have been there. He could have kidnapped Frisk to keep them from talking, or worse, _killed them_.

 

Or, for another instance, say that patch of flowers wasn’t there to break Frisk’s fall. They would have instantly died on impact. Surrounding that patch was just nothing but cold, hard dirt, and Frisk would have broken their skull open on it. Say Frisk hadn’t figured out just what to do when Toriel was fighting them. She would have killed Frisk, there’s no doubt about it. She would have killed them and only felt remorse after the fact. But, thanks to all these perfect moments and perfect instances, Frisk has been spared from these harsh deaths.

 

Maybe this was their life from now on; just narrowly avoiding death at every corner. Doomed to a life of wondering, “When?” and, “How?” as they dart down every shortcut and pay attention to every detail around them. Or maybe some sort of outside force was pushing this all along, pushing Frisk along to their life instead of harsh deaths. Frisk considered Flowey being that force, but then Frisk thought about it. Flowey can’t do much more than talk in most situations, so they’re most likely not the reason. Maybe Frisk had already done this all before, in some sort of past life, which is why they were able to avoid all the death.

 

That idea made Frisk shudder. Their mother believed in the possibility of past lives and alternate universes, but Frisk certainly did not. To think that there was more than one Frisk, living their life almost identically like Frisk, not only scared them, but also made them feel bad. Frisk thinks that even the worst of people don’t deserve to live the life they’ve lived so far.

 

And _that_ is an absolutely dreadful thing to hear from a child. A child, who has experienced so little of what their life could be, has already condemned themselves a lost cause. An empty life. A meaningless number on a census.

 

Truly, _that_ is tragic.

 

Frisk continued to walk, feeling utterly miserable, until they heard a dejected sigh to their left. They looked up, searching for the source of the noise, and saw a blue bunny monster leaning against a sort of...ice cream cart?

 

An ice cream man, in a snowy place like this? Now, _that_ had to the strangest thing Frisk has seen all day. And that’s really saying something. The bunny sighed again, opening the little cart’s hatch and pulling out a popsicle and turning it in their fingers.

 

“Ugh, I hate this weather,” The bunny sighed. “No one wants to buy any Nice Cream in the freezing cold! Not to mention, I’ve lost basically all of my clientele in Hotland, thanks to that nutty Royal Scientist.” Frisk smiled and took a few steps toward the bunny, grabbing their attention. They looked at Frisk and beamed, then fixed their posture.

 

“Hi!” The bunny greeted, their kind smile and enthusiasm an honest comfort to Frisk, “Would you like to buy some Nice Cream? It’s really cheap, only five gold!”

 

Frisk’s smile dropped; they hadn’t a penny on them. Last time they had money, the bullies at their school took it from them. That was their lunch money, so they couldn’t eat that day. The bunny saw Frisk frowning a panicked, rummaging through their ice cream cart. They popped back up with what looked to be a fudgesicle and handed it to Frisk.

 

“H-Here! Have this one on the house, since you gave me such a nice smile before!” The bunny said. Frisk looked at the fudgesicle and smiled, giving it a nice lick. It tasted sweet, chocolatey, and rich; Frisk could barely keep themself from eating the whole thing all at once. But, they managed to savor the little treat, even offering a lick to Flowey, who hesitantly took the offer. The vendor gave Frisk a big grin in response and waved goodbye as Frisk walked away.

 

With their belly filled and confidence boosted, Frisk made their way through the snow and, thanks to Flowey’s guidance, headed for Snowdin. But, they were, once again, halted by two very persistent monsters.

 

“Human! Walk no further! Your existence on this world is at its end!!” Frisk didn’t know whether to be shocked or to be expecting this, so they just settled on feeling an odd mix of both of them. There was Papyrus and Sans, once again, with a large gap of pathway between them. Frisk dreaded what kind of deadly boobytrap lay beneath the soft pillows of snow.

 

“See, bro? I told ya we should’ve just waited,” Sans said, “They got free and made it all the way here. Now, imagine I _didn’t_ tell us to stop and set up another trap, then they could’ve made it all the way to Snow-”

 

“Brother, I have no time for your useless chatter!” Papyrus cut Sans off, making Sans the slightest bit irritated. “Now, human, how you managed to make it past my first puzzle is _well_ beyond my knowledge. But, my obedient brother has set up a new puzzle that I’m sure will stop your existence _dead_ in its tracks!” Sans snorted at the accidental pun Papyrus made, but Papyrus did not seem to notice this. Or he just didn’t care; it’s very hard to tell with a guy like him.

 

“Behold! My idiot brother’s puzzle!” Papyrus announced, jestering to the space in front of him. Frisk half-expected some giant machine to pop out of the ground and swallow them whole. But, much to Frisk’s _and_ Papyrus’ surprise, nothing happened.

 

A beat. Then Papyrus turned to Sans.

 

“Sans, where is your puzzle?” Papyrus asked, his voice hushed like he did not want Frisk to hear this. Sans pointed to the ground in front of him.

 

“It’s right there, bro,” Sans stated. Frisk took a step closer and, upon closer examination of the ground, discovered a piece of paper lying there. Frisk walked to the paper and set Flowey down, grabbing the lone paper from the ground to inspect.

 

The paper had nothing on it but a small note:

 

_Hey, I was too lazy to make something for ya. So, just stare at this paper and pretend something important is on it._

 

_-sans_

 

_P.S. Look at this drawing I did of Papyrus. He’s got an ass for a face. Quite fitting, don’t you think?_

 

_P.P.S. Don’t answer that._

 

There was also a crudely drawn picture of Papyrus with his face replaced with a butt on it, and Frisk stifled a giggle because of it. But, they did as they were told and stared at the paper.

 

“Don’t worry, bro, I think they’re pretty trapped with this one.” Sans said, stifling his own chuckle. Papyrus let out an exasperated sigh and threw his arms into the air.

 

“I didn’t _need_ a puzzle to _trap_ them!! I needed a puzzle that would _kill_ them!!” Papyrus shouted. “Why are you _so_ incompetent?!?” Sans smirked and shrugged.

 

“What, you don’t wanna kill the little fucker on your own? You too wuss to do it? I mean, they’re right _there_. Nothing’s gonna stop you from killing them right now.” Sans replied. Papyrus’ expression dropped to something that was an uneven blend between conflicted and guilty. This made Sans laugh. “Ya see? You’re a wuss. You don’t even wanna kill this fucker, do ya? You just want their soul to mysteriously end up in your possession.”

 

“T-That’s not true, you imbecile!” Papyrus retaliated, suddenly looking very defensive.

 

Frisk peeked up from their paper to inspect Papyrus’ face. He seemed almost in denial about something; like all of these events were just him hindering what he perceives to be the inevitable. Maybe he didn’t actually want to kill Frisk? Maybe he was like Toriel; a monster lost in their desire for freedom but unable to actually commit to their spoken promises of ill-will to Frisk. Though this idea would have seemed improbable at Frisk’s first meeting with Papyrus, now it is becoming a more plausible idea. He just looked so guilty and nervous in these moments, it was hard for Frisk to judge how Papyrus _actually_ felt about them.

 

Well, they didn’t have long to think about this, because Papyrus dragged Sans away shortly after he defended himself and left Frisk all alone again. Frisk looked back to the paper and smiled, folding it neatly and placing it into their shorts pocket. They picked Flowey up off the ground, who complained of being too cold from the snow, and continued down the path Papyrus and Sans had just walked.  

 

Not too terribly far in front of them, Frisk noticed a pair of figures walking toward them. They were on a new path, and this one seemed to be long, but the two figures in black were just close enough for Frisk to make out. They seemed to both be carrying an object with a slight curve, which Frisk could eventually make out to be axes that curved toward each other to make a heart shape. Frisk took a step back, preparing to run, until they got a closer look at the figures’s faces.  

 

“Oh look, more dogs.” Flowey whispered. “Maybe these are those dogs Doggo was talking about. What were there names again? Doga..Dog...Something with ‘dog’ in it.”

 

“Hey, Dogaressa, do you smell that?” One of the dogs asked, turning to smell the air. Frisk noticed both dogs had glossy eyes and assumed, much like Doggo, they were blind. Though, these dogs were _naturally_ blind, unlike Doggo.

 

“Yes, Dogamy, I _do_ smell that.” The other dog, presumably Dogaressa, replied. Frisk dared not to move, for they knew that the dogs would have heightened senses of smell and hearing, thanks to their lack of eyesight. They stood stiffly as the dog pair came directly in front of them, nostrils flared as they sniffed every inch of the area. Once their noses reached Frisk, Flowey decided to step in.

 

“H-Hello,” They stuttered out, causing the dogs to jump back surprise. They seemed surprised, but they didn’t react. They just sort of...smelled and waited. So, Flowey continued. “My name is Frisk, and I’m just trying to get away from Papyrus. Uh, I met another dog farther back, who said that there would be monsters ahead who would be friendly. His name was Doggo, if I remember correctly?” Of course, Flowey had remembered correctly, but to play the part of an innocent child, one needs to learn to properly express the naivety of a child. The dogs, being blind, bought Flowey’s voice to be Frisk’s and approached Frisk once more. This time, they both simultaneously reached out and gently placed one of their paws atop Frisk’s head.

 

“We’re very sorry you’ve had to go through that.” The dog that first spoke, presumably Dogamy, said.

 

“We understand how it feels to be frightened and alone in these woods,” Dogaressa continued. “That’s how we met, after all.” Even though the dogs could not see each other, they still managed to share loving gazes between one another after Dogaressa had said that. They nuzzled noses, while Flowey pretended to gag. Frisk thought it was cute.

 

After the dogs were done canoodling, they informed Frisk that they could walk them only so far, for if they strayed too far from their posts they would most likely suffer some brutal mutilation, like Doggo had. Frisk understood that and walked quietly with the two dogs, as Flowey kept up friendly conversation. Sadly, they could only walk them a short distance, but Frisk was grateful for the company either way. The dog couple wished Frisk good luck and then walked back to their station.

 

There were a few more traps placed, undoubtedly, by Papyrus, as well as a bowl of very cold ravioli, which utterly confused both Flowey and Frisk, but eventually the pair made it to a very precarious-looking bridge.  

 

Frisk stood in front of the rickety bridge, looking past it to see the total length it stretched on to. Of course, this precarious, rickety bridge had only rope supports and was dangling over what could be considered a canyon. One little misstep could shatter one of the old planks and send Frisk falling to their death. So, naturally, Frisk was a little bit terrified to cross.

 

“Come on, Frisk, it’s not that much farther now!” Flowey encouraged. “Just past this bridge is the entrance to Snowdin, and we’ll be able to make it before sundown!” Though they knew this wouldn’t aid the frightened child holding them, Flowey hoped their words got through to the logical side of Frisk’s brain. Frisk looked at Flowey nervously, but nodded and took a small step forward onto the bridge. With slow, careful movements, Frisk inched across the bridge. The view on either side was both beautiful and frightening. The snow glistened in the remaining light of day, the trees in the distance looking like little snow-capped triangles from this altitude. Frisk admired the beauty of this wintery wonderland before returning their attention back to walking.

 

About three quarters of the way across the bridge, Frisk noticed the silhouette of two figures in the distance. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who those figures were.

 

“Halt, human! You shall not take another step!!” Papyrus called out, though it was difficult to see what sort of dramatic, evil-esque pose he was making from how far Frisk was standing.

 

“Hey kiddo, how’d ya like the ravioli?” Sans asked. Frisk gave a thumbs up in reply, despite not even touching the nearly-frozen pasta dish, causing Sans to let out a laugh. “Ya see, bro? I told ya they wouldn’t be hindered by your cooking. They actually ate the shit….they are much stronger than I could ever be.” This comment was rewarded with a slap to the back of the skull, which Frisk could see and hear from where they were at, but Sans didn’t seem to care about that.

 

“So, human, you see to have managed to escape every single puzzle, trap, or jape I have left in your way.” Papyrus said. “It baffles me how such a small, pitiful creature such as yourself was able to do such an impossible feat, but I guess I have underestimated the strength of the human race. Therefore, I shall hold nothing back now! This will surely stop you!! Then I, the Great Papyrus, shall take your soul and obtain all I have ever wanted and deserved!!” With that, Papyrus clapped his hand together and the trap lowered in front of Frisk’s very eyes.

 

Axes, flamethrowers, anvils, two laser guns, and a dog hanging on a rope were what was left hovering down the remaining bridge. Frisk couldn’t help but gasp at the sheer amount of danger just dangling above them. If they took another step, their body could be split, shot, burned, or crushed. Flowey shivered and prayed that there was a way around this.

 

“All of these weapons could end your existence in a mere moment! The possibility of you surviving this is quite small, so once I activate the trap it will be goodbye to you, human!!” Papyrus announced, cackling afterwards. Frisk trembled and shut their eyes, awaiting the horrors in front of them to start moving. Papyrus’s cackling died off and then there was silence. Frisk was a little confused because they had assumed the machinery would make some sort of noise when activated, but when they opened their eyes to check they noticed that nothing was moving. It was difficult to make out Papyrus’s face, but he appeared to just be standing with a switch in his hand. He said nothing, neither did Sans.

 

With all the remaining courage Frisk had left, Frisk walked closer. With every step, they waited for the trap to be activated and kill them in an instant. But, even when Frisk was about three feet away from Papyrus, he still did not activate the trap. He seemed to be staring at the box in a way that he wasn’t really focusing on anything. He seemed lost, confused and...sad? Why would he be sad? He was getting what he wanted, after all.

 

“Uh, bro?” Sans said, in an attempt to grab Papyrus’s attention, “The kid is, like, right there.” This seemed to break Papyrus from his trance, and he yelped in surprise at the close proximity Frisk was to him.

 

“H-How did you?!-I can’t believe it! I thought it was-This was supposed to be-” Papyrus said, baffled. Sans did what Frisk could only assume was the skeleton-version of an eyeroll and gestured to the machinery above.

 

“Bro, you never turned the damn thing on.” Sans noted. “You just stared off into space and let the kid walk over here.” Papyrus tensed, looking to the machinery and then to Frisk. He coughed into his hand, though the gesture was basically useless since he doesn’t have lungs, and then laughed nervously.

 

“Yes!! That was intended!!” Papyrus announced, looking away. “You see, I, uh, I saw that it was getting dark and decided that now would not be the best time to activate this trap!! It might take the human hours to die, and the locals will be returning home soon and will need to cross this bridge!! Yes, that’s exactly why I didn’t activate it!!” He looked to Frisk, his scowl turning more pathetic by the second. “Human, consider this an opportunity!! I suggest you kill yourself in the remaining hours of night you have and leave your soul at my doorstep, or else I will end your life tomorrow!!”

 

After that announcement, Papyrus promptly dropped the switch and ran as quickly as possible away from the bridge. Sans and Frisk watched Papyrus go, Sans letting out a laugh.

 

“Well, guess I’ll see ya tomorrow, kiddo.” Sans said. “Rest up, okay?” With that, he walked away. There was a beat, once both skeletons were gone, before Frisk let out a sigh of relief. Flowey smiled and patted Frisk’s hand with their leaf.

 

“Alright, Frisk, let’s get a move on. There’s an inn in Snowdin that offers free first nights to newcomers.” Flowey explained, guiding Frisk into town and to the inn. Though it was getting kind of dark, Frisk could make out the dismal little town, with it’s broken welcome sign and partially dilapidated homes. The inn seemed to be fairly intact, though, and the bunny woman running the inn was rather nice, after she stopped cowering behind the counter. She gave Frisk their room key and wished them a goodnight as Frisk walked up the steps to their room.

 

Once inside, they kicked off their shoes and placed them by the door, hoping they would dry off by the morning. They placed Flowey on the nightstand and shed off their jacket before climbing under the covers of the bed. The bed was warm and very soft, the exact opposite of the rock-hard mattress they had back at home. Fatigue quickly washed over Frisk, once they were inside in the comforts of the bed, and they looked to Flowey and smiled sleepily. Flowey looked back at Frisk and smiled just the same way.

 

“Goodnight, Frisk.” Flowey whispered as Frisk went to shut the lamp off that was on the nightstand, behind Flowey. Frisk patted Flowey’s head in response before curling up completely under the covers and falling fast asleep. It took Flowey a couple minutes to sleep, but after accepting that this was their situation at this current moment and taking a minute to assess what tomorrow may hold for them and their human companion, they fell asleep as well.

 

Now, sleep can reveal a lot about a person. How much or in what way a person sleeps can suggest a person’s personality, prior history, or even profession, if you pay close enough attention. But, if you are somehow able to tap into a person’s dreams, in the hours where they are in the middle of deep sleep, you can find out the most about a person.

 

Well, it’s about time we learned more about our two little friends, isn’t it? So let’s take a delve into their dreams and see what they’re _really_ thinking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so originally this chapter was going to be 3 chapters and each chapter was going to be focused on a puzzle. The first of these chapter's being the first puzzle, second being Sans's, and third being the bridge one. I was going to ignore the little X O ones because I figure those were there mainly for the gaming content, but writing them in would be odd and imply Papyrus wanting to help a lot more than he is in this fic so far. But what had happened was I got to writing the puzzles and felt very uninspired. I was very stressed out at the time, so I accidentally wrote the first puzzle a bit too short. Instead of going back and lengthening it (which I thought would have been stupid since it took so long to make in the first place), I decided I was going to include all three in one chapter and end it in the inn. 
> 
> Sadly, this entailed a lot more than I had thought, and it ended up getting really long. So, yeah, that's my spiel.

**Author's Note:**

> (Reminder: This AU has no depicted plot, so all of my depictions of this AU are purely of my own imagination. You can feel free to use my plot for other works of your own, but just make sure to give credit to the original AU makers! I do not own this AU, I'm just an avid fan of it!)


End file.
